David Sayler Director of Athletics | Miami University-Oxford Athletic Department
David Sayler Director of Athletics | Miami University-Oxford Athletic Department
36 years ago this spring, a Miami underclassman golfer strode to the first tee at Hueston Woods to begin his round. The golfer, a young man by the name of Mike Pero, had already shown signs of a bright and promising career wearing the Red and White.
In fact, he would go on to earn All-MAC honors in three consecutive seasons (1987-89) and help Miami Golf to a victory in that event, the 1987 Mid-American Conference Men's Golf Championship, kicking off a record-setting run of six straight team conference titles.
This weekend, Hueston Woods will host its first collegiate event since that 1987 MAC Championship.
His name? Cameron Pero.
The younger Pero, a native of Bloomfield, Ontario, hopes to follow in the footsteps of his father, a 1989 All-American, while also carving out his own path.
He's off to a good start.
The first-year RedHawk tied for ninth individually (out of 81 participants) in his very first college tournament last September, the Island Resort Intercollegiate in Bark River, Mich. He bested that mark a month later with a third-place performance in a field of 60 golfers at the Georgetown Intercollegiate, which was held at the prestigious Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City, N.J. Miami earned top-six team finishes in both events, and Pero was named MAC Golfer of the Week for his showing at Liberty National.
"When he's on, he can really putt the golf ball, and he can put strings of birdies together," said Miami coach JD Fletcher. "When he gets hot, he's really hot, and he's one of the most talented guys on the team when he's going. He's a really good driver of the golf ball as well too, and he's definitely a competitor.
"I think he's just going to be a great player…he's on the right track, and I'm really excited to see what he can do over these next couple years."
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As the son of a professional golfer (Mike Pero competed for several years on the Canadian Tour and played multiple PGA Tour events), Cameron Pero unsurprisingly got his start on the course at a very young age.
"I was probably three years old," Cameron said. "My older brother, who was eight at the time, was taking it up, so ever since I could really walk, I was playing and following him around.
"My dad and brother would play, and then I'd be in the cart. I'd whack one down the fairway and then chase after it!"
Cameron Pero's first-ever par on a par-4 hole
Mike said his focus with his sons was to always leave the golf course on a positive note, which helped nurture their love for the sport at a young age. "It's the game of a lifetime," Mike said. "And by no means when he was three, did I think he'd be where he's at now. I'm proud of him, as well as his older brother, and how golf is such a big part of their life."
"When Cameron first started playing, we would take a golf cart to play a few holes late in the day. He loved to run and race the cart to the 100-yard marker where he would start: Hit his drive and chase each shot with a club in each hand (a little 5-wood and a putter) to get the ball in the hole."
One of Cameron's most memorable moments as a young golfer came at Picton Golf and Country Club, the same course his dad had grown up playing on. "It was a nine-hole course back then, but they added nine holes in the late '90s to go to 18," Mike said. As a 13-year-old, Cameron aced the 175-yard par-3 14th for the only hole-in-one of his life (so far).
"You couldn't see where the hole was on the green, so walking up, we didn't know it went in," Cameron remembered. "I was with my dad and one of my good buddies, and we just couldn't find it. We checked all around the green, and then finally looked in the cup and it was there!"
Cameron played a variety of sports as a youngster, going through phases where different ones would be his favorite. He got experience in baseball, basketball, hockey, soccer, track, and even badminton and squash at one point. "I loved sports," said Cameron. "It was my whole life, pretty much." Mike served as Cameron's golf coach, but also coached him in other sports such as hockey.
"Before a big game, he and his teammates would hear me say, 'Don't get out-competed today, boys,'" said Mike. "Learn to compete, believe in yourself, and most importantly have fun doing it, in any sport, at any level."
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When it came time for Cameron to pursue collegiate golf, he didn't initially have much in the way of offers or interest. "I didn't really have any great results until late in the recruiting process," Cameron recalled. "I noticed JD Fletcher was a brand-new coach here at Miami, so I sent him an email. He responded, and loved that my dad was an alum here on the golf team. He gave me a chance…he liked my swing and thought I had potential.
"Then a few weeks after that I went and won a national tournament!"
Fletcher had made an intentional effort to focus on Canada in his recruiting when he took the Miami job (and was already recruiting another Ontario native at the time, Michael Weber), so everything aligned perfectly for the RedHawks' coach. "The last name sounded really familiar," said Fletcher. "I looked at our wall, and oh, there's Mike Pero!
"That connection was really cool…I'm just grateful that Cameron decided to come here."
Mike said the small-town feel of Oxford reminded both him and his son of where they grew up in Prince Edward County. "Miami University is one of the coolest, prettiest places you'll ever have the opportunity to spend four years at and grow as a student-athlete and a person," Mike said.
Prior to his recruiting visit, Cameron had been to campus at least one other time, when Mike brought his sons down to see a Miami-Michigan State postseason hockey game in 2012. "That rink was so loud it was rocking," Mike said.
The experience as a child initially helped pique Cameron's interest in the university. "It was really fun," Cameron recounted. "I just remember the atmosphere; it was awesome."
Mike, who owned Miami's best-ever finish at the NCAA Championships as an individual golfer when he graduated in 1989 (13th place, seven strokes behind medalist Phil Mickelson) was also impressed with how the university had continued to improve and grow since his time as a student-athlete, also in the Farmer School of Business. (Mike majored in Marketing; Cameron plans to study Finance.)
"I'm just in awe…how much has changed with the facilities at Miami University since my teammates and I went there is unbelievable," Mike said. "How nice it is, how much different it is, with all the upgrades [to the buildings]: It's incredible, really, and still has such a great feel.
"I'm envious of what the students and athletes have now for sure. But I'm so happy for them too…
"Cameron loves Miami, he loves his teammates, and is just thrilled to be there and be a part of the journey he's on over the next four years. I wish them all the success in the world with their golf and their studies and the opportunity to make great memories together…some of my best friends are from being teammates back in school.
"Miami was a big part of my life and such a special place. I was very fortunate my four years there playing golf. Great teammates, some really good players and even better people."
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Although there are plenty of striking similarities between the career paths of Mike Pero and Cameron Pero as the latter winds down his freshman season, Cameron is focused on making a name for himself and blazing his own trail during his time as a RedHawk.
"I feel like I kept elevating my game last fall," Cameron said. "I was really proud of the way that I represented our team and helped our team earn the places we did."
"He probably has a little pressure to live up to [what his dad did here]," Fletcher said. "But I think he's all about taking that on…it's something he has to keep working through and learning to deal with, but he's doing a great job of it already and is definitely embracing it correctly."
At the Ontario Amateur last summer, Hall of Fame golfer Gary Cowan autographed a book for Cameron with a simple four-word inscription that resonated with the soon-to-be-freshman.
'Be who you are.'
"I don't know if it's supposed to be this deep, but it hit me," Cameron said.
"I know that my game can stack up against anyone's if I play how I'm capable of, so I just really shouldn't try and be someone else. Just be who I am."
His father agreed. "You find your own path and know your own game," Mike said. "The biggest thing is: Enjoy the journey and be true to yourself.
"Golf is a funny game. It's a great game; it's spectacular. But you can lose perspective and focus sometimes. Always remember, adversity can be a good friend, so learn and grow from all of it."
So when Cameron Pero tees off Sunday morning at Hueston Woods in front of Miami fans, students and friends, the mental checklist he'll go through is the exact same one he's rehearsed hundreds, if not thousands, of times with his father (who will likely be in attendance).
Grip. Posture. Ball position. Alignment.
But the swing, the shot and the score will be his own.
And neither Pero would have it any other way.
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