Thirty-five kilometres northwest of downtown Ottawa, a young Dylan Rouse swings a golf club as hard as a three-year-old can into the wide-open yard of his Dunrobin home.
From sunrise to sundown, he’s joined by his father — and eventually his younger brother, Ty — hitting balls into their backyard that for years faithfully served as a makeshift driving range.
It was a time long before golf became anything more than a family activity for Rouse, now a varsity athlete who wrapped up his final season at Carleton University this year.
Those backyard routines evolved into a demanding varsity schedule, as Rouse balanced a bachelor’s of biomedical and electrical engineering and is now pursuing a master’s in applied science.
Through it all, his golf swing has stayed largely the same.
Yet in his final year on the varsity team, Rouse delivered the best season of his career.
It was also an unprecedented year of success for the rest of Carleton’s golf squad.
Rouse attributes the achievement not just to talent or practice, but also to the mental performance coach brought in for the team this season.
“I don’t think it’s a coincidence that when I started working with him, my scores have gone down, and my finishes have become better and stronger,” Rouse said.
Where every other varsity sport at Carleton competes for at least two months, the stretch containing four meets in one month can be taxing on the golfers, according to head coach Alison Timlin.
Timlin, who oversees both the men’s and women’s teams, says prioritizing mental health was a major reason for this year’s breakthrough performances.
“Our season is so condensed that, like in past years, we still had the same quality of players, but their physical or mental health broke down within the season,” she said.
That changed when Karl Caldwell entered the picture — a master’s student at the University of Ottawa and sports performance coach who approached Timlin with an interest in supporting varsity golfers.
About two-thirds of the team worked with Caldwell throughout the season, as well as during preseason and now into the winter training months.
“This year, it was just a ton of consistency, and they all reached their peak potential because they kept their personal lives in a great place — they kept their mental health really strong,” Timlin said.
She added that this side of training is as important, if not more important, than technical mastery.
“Especially at this level, if you’re good enough to make a varsity golf team, you have decent enough physical skills,” Timlin said. “It’s really about who taps into that positive attitude and being resilient.”
At the Bert Kae Queen’s Invitational in September, the men’s squad — featuring Dylan and brother Ty Rouse, Ben Webb, Josh Marcotte, and Jaxon Zanatta — secured a third-place finish, while Claire Stoney led the women with a second-place individual result.
At the Waterloo/Laurier Invitational, Dylan and Ty tied for fifth individually, helping the men’s team to a fourth-place overall finish. On the women’s side, Sanvi Swarup placed fourth individually, guiding the Lady Ravens to a strong fifth-place team result.
The University of Toronto Invitational saw the men’s team climb to third overall, with Ty Rouse capturing first place individually and freshman Zanatta following closely in second. Claire Stoney rounded out the women’s competition with a fifth-place individual finish.
The season culminated at the OUA Championships on Oct. 17-19, where Stoney led the Lady Ravens with an eighth-place finish and earned OUA Second Team All-Star honours, helping the women’s team secure fifth overall.
On the men’s side, Dylan delivered a breakthrough performance, shooting a -2 (142) on the second day to claim his first podium finish at the championships and guide the team to a seventh-place overall finish. His play also earned him OUA First Team All-Star honours, capping off a remarkable final year on the Carleton varsity golf team.
“One of the things with golf is that no matter how good you are, theoretically you can always be better,” Rouse said.
“I love that aspect of it, the amount that you can put in the grind, and looking back on the past years and seeing that you’re improving year over year over year.”
Rouse joined the team in 2019 after starting at Carleton in 2017, drawn partly by the program and partly by the chance to stay close to home.
Golfing as a family continued at the university level, as Ty, three years younger than Dylan, followed his older brother to Carleton.
“He’s way better than I am at golf,” Dylan admitted with a smile. “So we push each other in that way. I’d say my leadership skills come from pushing him to be better.”
Timlin remembers when the older Rouse brother joined the team in his second year of undergrad, just as she was beginning her first year as an assistant coach.
“He’s always had the physical skills and the talent. I think what took him to the next level over the past few years was unlocking his mind and putting less pressure on himself and believing in himself to know that he has what it takes.”
Timlin says Rouse has always been a natural leader, a quality that helped both rookies and veteran players contribute to Carleton achieving one of the strongest overall team results in program history.
“I know that the guys continuing on the team only want to build off that momentum,” Rouse said.
So what’s next for a Carleton varsity golf athlete in the offseason?
From November through early April, the focus shifts from competition to development. Athletes spend time in the gym building strength, working on speed and mobility, and making adjustments to their swings.
With Ottawa winters bringing snow and frigid temperatures, outdoor practice is off the table, but training continues indoors. The team takes advantage of facilities like the Ben Franklin Dome, where they can work on technique year-round.
Timlin is working to support her athletes on and off the course, currently fundraising through the Carleton Golf “Drive for Success” campaign to provide resources for training, travel, and development for both the men’s and women’s teams.
She hopes her many rookies on the team continue to thrive in future seasons.
“I get to help others with their game and really help bring them out to the next level,” Timlin said. “I find a sense of joy in that.”
Featured image by Ian MacAlpine
