When the COVID-19 pandemic suddenly ended Connor Creasy’s freshman golf season at Georgia last year, he returned home to Virginia devastated. Little did he know that the heartbreak he was about to face was much worse than a season cut short.

On April 10, 2020, a fire completely burned down Creasy’s family home. However, just over a year later, he has recovered from the tragedy and is now playing some of his best golf as the Bulldogs prepare to travel to Tallahassee, Fla., for NCAA Regionals next week.

The events of last April are still fresh on Creasy’s mind: It was a typical Friday evening during the quarantine. He was on the golf course behind their house, working on his short game, while his parents and two sisters were preparing dinner. That’s when the nightmare began.

At 5:55 p.m., a gust of wind blew the flame from a small gas-line fire pit over to one of the chairs on the back deck. Within 30 minutes, the three-story, 5,400-square-foot brick home was up in flames.

“I was chipping and putting, and I saw some smoke coming over the trees. I went to look at where it was coming from, and sure enough, my house was on fire,” Creasy said.

Knowing that his parents and two sisters were all in the house, he immediately ran back. Fortunately, everyone was able to escape safely, but the house burned completely, leaving the Creasy family with practically nothing.

The house that Creasy had lived in for practically his entire life was gone. The fire destroyed all of his possessions, including his five state championship golf rings and many trophies.

“It opened up a new perspective in my life, especially during the pandemic,” Creasy said. “It was hard because we didn’t have anything and there were no stores open to go buy anything.”

To help with the ruin, the athletic department from the University of Georgia mailed 47 pounds of clothes to the family two days after the fire. Creasy’s former school also sent them two boxes of Abingdon High School Falcons gear.

“Fortunately, we had a great community around us that gave a lot of stuff,” Creasy said. “I went from only having the clothes on my back to having an entire suitcase of clothes in only a couple of hours due to the generosity of friends and neighbors.”

Although the fire was devastating for Creasy and his family, he did not let it set him back.

“Our family motto is that ‘the comeback is better than the setback,’” Creasy’s mom, Debbie, said.

Creasy took that motto with him on the golf course as he continued improving his game just a few days after the fire.

“Golf was my get away from it for a while,” Creasy recalled. “It was a nice distraction from all that was going on with COVID-19, as well. It definitely gave me a new perspective as to how to approach each day and each round.”

Now, just over a year later, Creasy is playing the best golf of his career, competing on the starting roster of the No. 11 team in the nation.

On April 21, Creasy made his SEC Championship debut at Sea Island Golf Club where he shot three-over to finish 12th in three rounds of stroke play. Creasy went on to win his match in the quarterfinals 3&2, but the top-seeded dogs lost three of the remaining four matches to lose to Texas A&M.

Georgia will be the No. 2 seed in the Tallahassee Regional, which will be held at the Seminole Legacy Golf Club May 17-19. Creasy is expected to be in the five-man lineup and will be looking to help the Bulldogs advance to the NCAA Championships in Scottsdale, Ariz. while also fulfilling his personal goals.

“I would love to win a National Championship,” Creasy said. “That is my main goal while here at Georgia. After college, I would like to play professionally if it all works out. I want to be able to add to the list of Georgia players that have played on the PGA Tour.”