PACOIMA — The late afternoon ritual commenced over a slow sunset for Crespi senior Grant Leary at Hansen Dam Golf Course.
Leary took swings at a driving range set up by his father, John, a former USC golfer and a high school All-American who is now an instructor at Hansen Dam.
First, he fires with a 7-iron, aiming to keep his shots centered and then a 3-iron with the dot of the ball squared upon three Western Sycamore trees, one centered parallel to the 50-foot marker while the two others fade right.
John Leary drives up in a golf cart and spends 15 minutes watching his son swing and offers a few compliments before driving off. No pressure, no analyzing. Just Grant Leary, the ball and swings that are loose and free flowing but find their center.
“Knowing more than technique and skill is knowing how to play the game,” Leary said of his father. “Coaching is one thing but having playing experience is another.”
Experience and confidence allowed Leary this season to post scores unheard of in high school golf, which is why Leary has been chosen as the LA Daily News Player of the Year.
Crespi senior Grant Leary, holding the CIF-SS awards he won this year, at Hansen Dam Golf Course in Pacoima, Calif., on Thursday, June 4, 2026. (Photo by Ethan Hanson, LA Daily News/SCNG)
He matched the course record – 9-under par – at Los Robles in a Mission League tournament and he shot a 4-under 68 at Brookside in Pasadena against St. Francis.
He fired a career-low 62 at Balboa Golf Course in the California Junior Golf Spring Championship, and he won the CIF Southern Section Northern Individual title with a round of 64 at Los Robles.
“It doesn’t matter what situation you have, whether you’re a country club kid or a city kid like I am practicing,” Leary said. “If you have the will to work, things will pan out your way.”
Being a multi-sport athlete proves key for Leary
While Leary has golfed since he was 10 years old, he wasn’t thrust into the sport despite his father’s career.
He played football, basketball and track. His father believed it was important for him to be a well-rounded athlete first before transitioning more into golf. That background would be key to his son’s success.
“It came with the understanding that you have to be an athlete in this sport,” John Leary said. “Just play a bunch of different sports and if golf ended up being the deal, those sports were going to help anyway. I was more inclined to make him an athlete first.”
The younger Leary made golf his main sport by the time he was 13 years old and is ranked 451st by the American Junior Golf Association. He placed fifth in the RG Golf Junior Championship last July and tied for 23rd at the PGA Junior West Championship last June.
“Coming from playing those sports gave me the foundation of being an athlete before specializing in a specific sport,” Leary said.
None of it, Leary said, would be possible without the philosophies shared by his father.
“The ability to push past even if you’re hurting, and the mentality you have to have when things aren’t going well when you’re getting tired and your team needs you,” Leary said. “To keep going and never quitting. I’d say that carried over from football, basketball and track.”
Photography becomes outlet for Leary
Leary doesn’t play basketball, football or soccer anymore. But he’s still a rabid sports fan who is a diehard USC football fan and he will find any way to be involved in a game.
He started photography and became one of the team photographers at Crespi.
Getting involved in the action came with a trigger and lens. He saw sports in a different light, watched angles and it allowed him to find a muse in sports but without competing.
He could be demiurgic and use his passion for sports to help his classmates.
“It’s really cool to be in the locker room or in the dugout with the other sports,” Leary said. “You’re getting a fresh taste of another sport rather than having the same repetitive thing over and over again, and it’s fun to be a part of a team as well.”
He explained how photography has allowed him to see courses and dictate how he wants to navigate courses with his driver and approaching shots to holes.
“It brings out the creative side that I like to apply to,” Leary said. “If I’m practicing, rather than hitting the same stock shot, I might try to play it like a situation. Pretend that I’ve hooked the drive left so I either have to launch the ball over the tree or maybe curve it around it. It helps me prepare for what I’m going to see on the course rather than playing range golf.”
U.S. Open qualifying and next phase at San Jose State
Leary was among the top five players to advance in U.S. Open qualifying by shooting a 1-under 71 at Brentwood Country Club on May 4.
After the summer, he’ll begin attending college at San Jose State.
San Jose State hosts the Western Intercollegiate, one of the elite NCAA regular-season tournaments at Pasatiempo Country Club in Santa Cruz.
Golf continues to be his passion because it was the one sport that didn’t catch on as quickly. It still hasn’t caught on in Leary’s mind. It’s a game of self improvement, learning and relearning.
A yearning to grow that’s proved tantamount to his success as a player.
“It didn’t come naturally to me,” Leary said. “All the other sports I had a pretty good grasp on to pick up and how to play. But golf, (it took) a really long time to get used to. It made me stick to it because it was hard. And my work ethic allowed me to get good at this game, even if it didn’t come naturally.”