Michigan State men's golf is playing for far more than just a tournament title this week
Just as it does at every event, Michigan State's men's golf hopes to finish atop the leaderboard this week.
This tournament comes with a twist, though. Because the Spartans, and every other school in the 18-team field, are playing for more than themselves.
MSU stands in seventh place after Monday's first round of the inaugural Folds of Honor Collegiate at American Dunes Golf Club in Grand Haven. The proceeds for the tournament, which will continue Tuesday and conclude Wednesday, will benefit the Folds of Honor organization as well as the Golf Coaches Association of America's scholarship fund.
It's an effort that's been in the works for more than a year.
'About more than just us'
MSU coach Casey Lubahn considers Ian Ziska, the club pro at American Dunes, one of his closest friends. During one of the pair's many conversations, it hit them: They should hold a college tournament at Ziska's course. But they wanted to make the event special.
So Lubahn called Lt. Colonel Dan Rooney, who founded Folds of Honor, a non-profit organization that helps the families of fallen or disabled armed forces members, as well as first responders, with educational opportunities. The day after former Spartan golfer James Piot won the U.S. Amateur in August 2021, Lubahn flew to Tulsa, Oklahoma, to meet Rooney in person.
"When you meet with him, you see what a visionary he is," Lubahn said. "We sat there for three, four hours, just throwing ideas at the wall about how we could make this great and do something that was different than what we do in college golf."
At the highest level of college golf, Lubahn said, holding a tournament comes with a straightforward mindset. Find the best course you can, invite as many high-profile teams as possible and make sure the players receive great gifts and fine dining.
"This event is about raising money for Folds of Honor, highlighting awareness of something that is a part of American society," Lubahn said. "These heroes have either been killed or disabled on the frontlines, and now they're honoring first responders, too. We want to make college golf, for this week at least, about more than just us."
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The military is close to Lubahn's heart, instilled from a young age.
Hanging in the living room at his home is an American flag his grandfather brought back after serving in World War II — a flag featuring 48 stars. No matter where Lubahn goes in the future, that flag always will have a prominent spot in his living room. Lubahn's father also served; he was "a very proud" Vietnam veteran, Lubahn said.
Slowly, over time, his father shared stories of his stint fighting overseas.
"When you go through the memorial at American Dunes, you get to read people's stories," he said. "These are real humans who made the ultimate sacrifice."
For Lubahn, his passion for the military made Michigan State "a natural fit" to serve as this week's tournament host.
"This is very important to the Folds of Honor organization. It's obviously very important for Michigan State golf and the GCAA," Lubahn said. "We hope that at the end of the day, this becomes a staple for West Michigan and for our schedule."
One of the Spartans' top players this season, fifth-year senior Troy Taylor II, also has military connections. His aunt served. So did his grandfather, who worked at Wright Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio. There, he served on the engineering team that helped develop the F-15 fighter jet.
"Getting to play for soldiers who have protected this country and given us our freedom, it means a lot to play for something much bigger than yourself and your university," Taylor said. "We're paying our respect."
'It's just the norm, unfortunately'
The military tie isn't the sole reason this week carries extra meaning for Taylor. The field features two HBCU teams, Texas Southern and Virginia Union, a nod to the fact 41% of Folds of Honor recipients are minorities.
Taylor, whose father, Troy Taylor Sr., played basketball at Ohio State in the 1980s, is one of the few Black golfers at a Power 5 school.
He hopes to be an inspiration to others.
"I want young kids on social media to know they can go to an HBCU school and be productive, or go to a Power 5 school and play there as well," Taylor said. "I want to open up doors and have other, younger minorities maybe want to pick up a club."
Since he started playing golf, Taylor has lost count of how many times he's the lone minority competing in a given tournament. It hasn't gotten easier over time.
"It's just the norm, unfortunately," he said. "It's not a new thing. It's not hard to get over. I use it as a chip on my shoulder, really, to not just represent myself and MSU well, but to represent minority golf and African-American golfers the best I can."
That's why this week, one of his chief objectives is cultivating more relationships with the players on Texas Southern and Virginia Union's rosters.
"I always like talking. That's one thing I always do," Taylor said. "I never want try to act like I'm better than anyone else. I want to go up and say hello to them, because I understand that a majority of the time when they're not in their college events, when they go to other tournaments, they're normally the only African-American."
On the course, Taylor isn't sure he's ever played better for an extended period of time. His results bear it out.
This past summer, he qualified for the U.S. Amateur. He won the Columbus District Golf Association Amateur in Ohio. He then finished runner-up at the Ohio Amateur. And he was the low amateur at the John Shippen National Invitational, tying for fifth at the Detroit Golf Club in June.
He returned to East Lansing flush with confidence for the coming season.
"It gave me a lot of momentum, knowing I can do things I want to do and achieve my goals," he said. "Going into my last year here, I wanted to leave doing something special. For me, that's us winning the Big Ten championship. For me, that's trying to hold myself accountable for everything I can do to help our team. If I play my best golf and work as hard as I can, I'm doing my part."
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Lubahn has noticed Taylor's growth. Compared to last year, Taylor's maturity level "is off the charts." In the past, Taylor's emotions swung wildly from one end of the spectrum to the other. Now, he's gotten better at remaining steady, regardless of the way the ball bounces.
"He looks like a fifth-year, senior leader, and I'm so proud of him, because it hasn't been easy," Lubahn said.
If the Spartans are going to make a deep run in the postseason next spring, Lubahn said, it will be because of Taylor. He has set high expectations for himself: He wants to be an All-Big Ten and All-America selection; he also wants to retain his Academic All-Big Ten status for the fourth straight year.
His on-course play improved, he said, because he took Lubahn's advice: focus on "being 1% better every day."Taylor makes sure he never forgets the mantra, hanging it in his locker as a reminder.
Still, he admits it's nearly impossible not to obsess over the number he signs for on his scorecard after 18 holes.
"It's hard not to be results-focused in this game, because at the end of the day, your score is a number," Taylor said. "It's not like other sports. In basketball, you could have five points and three rebounds and still really impact the game."
'Next step of development' for MSU men's golf
Under Lubahn's guidance, the Spartans have become a fixture at NCAA regionals, earning bids five of the past six seasons. Because of the support of generous donors, and the backing of the athletics department, Lubahn said the men's golf program is "in a special place." Piot winning the U.S. Amateur brought a heightened level of attention to the program.
But Lubahn isn't satisfied.
Which is part of the reason he wanted to host the Folds of Honor Collegiate.
"We're pushing the envelope even further forward," he said, "and that's we're doing with this event. It's the next step of development of men's golf at Michigan State."
They're full steam ahead on the tournament's future — Lubahn said invites already have been sent for the 2023 edition.
Now he just has to get through this week.
"The first year is always the hardest, so once we get this one done," he said, "I think we'll be OK."
Contact Ryan Black at rblack@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @RyanABlack.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: New tournament, hosted by Michigan State, puts the military first