Golf’s maxim is fairly simple to improve, one must play a lot. Nathaniel Spencer took that to heart this summer.

In fact, the Lawrence High junior played so often, and competed in so many tournaments, it’s a toss-up as to what traveled farther: all his shots combined or his mother’s Nissan Altima.

Lawrence High junior Nathaniel Spencer takes a swing Sunday at Lawrence Country Club. Spencer spent his summer traveling around the country and playing golf.

“You could say all my drives went farther than the car,” Spencer said.

He’s not kidding, either.

Spencer played in 18 tournaments from June 3 to Aug. 16th, covering eight states and roughly 6,000 miles.

“I’ve been playing every single day, except the days that we’re traveling,” he said. “I got kinda worn out at by the EDS.”

That tournament, held at the end of July in Corinth, Texas, just outside of Dallas, capped a trip from Minnesota, back to Lawrence, to Pennsylvania, down to Maryland, back to Lawrence and then to Texas in a span of two weeks. All told, he covered nearly 3,000 miles during the junket.

Spencer started out well, finishing eighth at the American Junior Golf Assn.’s hp Junior Classic at the Pines in Nisswa, Minn., tied for 17th at PGA Junior Event #8 in Berlin, Md., but missed the cut in Corinth, shooting an 80 for the first time in a month.

It’s not like Spencer’s asking for sympathy, either. He understands that few people get to spend the summer playing golf, and he relished his. He and his father, Dan, did most of the driving, though mom, Sarah, was there for some tournaments. His dad, a professor of business at Kansas University, introduced Nathaniel to golf when he was 4 years old, so this has just been the natural progression of father-son bonding.

“I’m really glad he can do it,” Spencer said of the time his dad spent driving. A typical trip had them leave in the afternoon, with Dan driving and Nathaniel fiddling with the radio.

“I just try to find a classic rock station,” he said. “Something we can both listen to.”

Dan laughs.

“That was a real big thing with him,” the elder Spencer said. “He always wanted to find the latest rock station and crank it up. Certainly, that kept me awake.”

By the end of the summer, Nathaniel drove himself to the AJGA Marsh Kansas City Junior at Oakwood Country Club. It was his dad’s way of letting him do one more thing on his own. Once he taught him to play, Dan Spencer slowly moved away from working on his son’s game.

“He got me to do a lot of things,” Nathaniel Spencer said. “I never really had a swing coach. If I needed some help, he worked with me. But by 10 or 11, I pretty much knew the fundamentals of my swing.”

For Spencer to know his game at such a young age may be his greatest advantage. Older players can spend thousands of dollars on golf lessons and still be refining their swing by retirement age. Yet he knows what he’s doing, why he’s swinging the way he is, and, if there’s a hitch, how to correct it.

Of course, there’s been plenty of Lawrence residents that have helped Spencer along the way, like Alvamar Country Club pro Randy Towner, and Lawrence Country Club pros Jon Zylstra and Greg Dannevik. He also says LHS coach Ron Commons has helped him with the mental aspects of the game. Commons has a simpler explanation.

“When I hang around, he seems to play a little bit better,” Commons said.

That held true last May when Spencer shot an even-par 72, leading the Lions to the Sunflower League team title and capturing the individual crown as well. A week earlier, he carded a 70 in winning the Olathe North Invitational. And Spencer was a big part of the Lions finishing fifth as a team at state, though his round of 80 was one of his worst that spring.

He’ll return next spring as the Lions’ top golfer, with a couple of goals in mind defend his Sunflower League title, and improve on his regional and state finishes.

Oh yeah, and add a few pounds to his 6-foot, 112-pound frame.

Not that he needs the added size. He already drives the ball farther than most of the LHS team, which doesn’t really concern him.

“If I can strike the ball consistently, that’ll make me a much better golfer,” Spencer said. “It doesn’t matter how far you hit it, it matters how straight it goes.”