Petoskey, Gaylord wrap up BNC play; Blue Devils' Putnam is league medalist
GAYLORD — Throughout the 2022 golf season, the Big North Conference has consistently featured the Traverse City programs on top and the rest of the pack fighting to separate behind them.
When BNC teams gathered one final time on Tuesday in Gaylord at the Gaylord Golf Club for the annual Big North Championship match, not much changed.
Traverse City Central and West both fought for the top spot, while Petoskey, Alpena, Gaylord and Cadillac all went shot or shot behind, with a pair of ties coming behind the Trojans and Titans.
Central took the league finals with a round of 305, followed by West with a 310, then Petoskey and Alpena each carded a 339. The third place spot then came down to a fifth golfer, which the Northmen had the edge in.
“Where we should be in the conference as a team is third place,” Petoskey coach Chad Loe said. “With the Traverse City schools shooting around 300, that’s a tough to beat. If the guys play their average, then the guys should be shooting around 330 and that’s a respectable score.”
Gaylord and Cadillac then tied behind Petoskey, both carding 342 on the day.
The Blue Devils did come away with the championship round medalist and season medalist overall, as junior Kole Putnam carded a 72 Tuesday and finished the BNC season averaging 73, best among league players.
For Blue Devils coach Jason Latz, it’s not a surprise to see Putnam at the top of the league, as he’s been Mr. Consistent over the season.
“He’s always been in the 70s, just very, very consistent,” said Latz. “His game is pretty boring and that’s a good thing in golf. He hits fairways, he hits greens and then two puts for par.”
Putnam was the lone golfer out of the area to earn All-BNC honors for the season, while Alpena and Cadillac each picked up one and West and Central stole the rest of the spots.
Leading for Petoskey on the day was Jackson Jonker with an 83 on the scorecard, while Max Faulkner and Collin Caporosso each shot 85. Parker Streiff then shot 86, followed by Zach Reid, 91; and Michael Squires, 95.
Gaylord’s next up came as Bryce Harding with a round of 84, one of his top performances of the season, then Luke Somerville carded a 91 and Jared Gasco shot 94. Alex Cook and Paige Caverson were also in the mix for the Blue Devils.
Most teams will get in one more round before turning focus to regionals next week, with Petoskey heading to West Branch for an Ogemaw Heights hosted match at The Nightmare.
Division 2 regional play will then take place on Tuesday, May 31 at Lincoln Hills Golf Club in Ludington, which will include Gaylord, Petoskey, Cadillac and Cheboygan, among a host of others from the Grand Rapids area on north.
Three teams will move on to the state finals out of the regional, along with three qualifying individuals.
Contact Sports Editor Drew Kochanny at dkochanny@petoskeynews.com. Follow him on Twitter, @DrewKochanny, and Instagram, @drewkochanny
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Petoskey, Gaylord wrap up BNC play; Blue Devils' Putnam is league medalist
