As a youngster, Dan Obremski would travel all over the world to watch his father play racquetball.

Dan Obremski Sr. was one of that sport's all-time greats, an inductee into the USA Racquetball Hall of Fame.

The younger Obremski remembers being as young as 3 or 4 watching his dad play, and even though he hasn't played competitively at the world-class level for about a decade, it made enough of an impression on the son that he knew he wanted to compete to be the best at something.

"I always saw myself playing a pro sport because when I was growing up, my dad was the best at racquetball, so I always wanted to be the best at whatever the sport was," Obremski said. "It could have been tennis or baseball ... or it could have been golf."

Obremski, a 2005 Penn-Trafford High School graduate, ultimately chose to strive for a career in the latter. So far, it appears to have been a wise choice.

The most recent evidence to that end was his victory in the Westmoreland County Amateur late last month at The Madison Club. Obremski shot a 6-under 210 during the three-round tournament to beat Jeannette's David DeNunzio by one stroke.

Obremski will be a senior at Coastal Carolina University in Conway, S.C., this fall, and he has, at times, been ranked among the top 50 college players in the country, according to Golfweek. He currently is at No. 277.

Over the course of his career, Obremski's scoring average is 74.2. Coastal Carolina won the Division I Big South Conference title for the sixth consecutive season and took 11th place at the NCAA Northeast Regional. During Obremski's freshman year, the Chanticleers advanced to the NCAA championships.

What makes all of this all the more remarkable is that Obremski didn't fully embrace golf as the sport on which he would focus until after high school. Obremski hadn't played much golf until he got to high school, and he was also a standout baseball player.

"After high school, I had a decision to make, I had to choose what I wanted to focus on for my career," Obremski said.

"I just felt that golf had more opportunities in the long run. I can play golf longer. But I do miss baseball when I'm watching it."

Always a long hitter with athleticism and a solid swing, the game's psychology is the only thing Obremski feels can hold him back.

"I've given myself a few opportunities in some college events, had leads going into the final round and just never really capitalized," Obremski said. "I was tied for the lead going into the last round [at the Westmoreland Amateur] and I did well. I controlled my emotions.

"That's been the biggest thing over the past few years, controlling my emotions. That's one of the things that's helped me."

Obremski is an exercise and sports science major and plans on keeping golf a big enough part of his life that it's a vocation of some sort -- preferably, of course, competing as a player.

"I definitely want to make a living at playing golf. That's the No. 1 goal, and that's what I'm looking forward to."