Summer Golf Roundup: Tuslaw's Evan Back wins top division of Galen Swartzentruber Junior Series
For nearly two decades, the Galen Swartzentruber Junior Series has been a staple on the local golf scene.
The 18th edition of the six-week event concluded earlier this month at Riceland Golf Course with four area players being crowned as champs of their respective divisions.
Tuslaw junior Evan Back outlasted Dalton’s Jaden Schlabach for tops in the Point Standings in Division I (grades 11-12), while Wooster’s Sammy Fleming took first in Div. II (9-10), Smithville’s Owen Ward won Div. III (7-8) and Waynedale’s Adi Weirick won the Girls Division.
Back finished the summer with 32½ points, ahead of Schlabach (28) and Mustang teammates Adam Sibilia and Andrew Smith, who each compiled 20 points.
Fleming and Ward dominated their way to division championships. Fleming had 54 points to finish ahead of Waynedale’s Hank Miller (26) and Brayden Schlabach (26), while Ward had 59 points to take first over Waynedale’s Cooper Miller (33).
Both Div. I and Div. II competed in 18-hole contests, while Div. III played nine. Players earned 10 points for a win, eight points for runner-up, six for third, four for fourth, two for fifth and one for sixth.
Like the boys Div. I series, the girls portion was close heading into the final week, with Weirick compiling 35 points for the victory over Wooster’s Payton Haynes (30).
The series ended one week later than scheduled, due to inclement weather earlier this month, but saw some exciting competition on the final day. Dalton’s Brendan Lehman fired a 73 for medalist honors in Div. I and a three-shot win over Schlabach, while Fleming shot an 80 to win Div. II and Ward won Div. III with a 46. Hillsdale’s Dally Meeks carded a 103 for the Girls Division victory.
Going national
Winning two state titles in three years provides a program with some great opportunities, and Hiland got to experience one of those earlier in July. The Hawks' 2021 state title team journeyed to the prestigious Pinehurst Resort in North Carolina to take part in the NHSGA High School Boys Golf National Invitational.
Facing some of the best competition in the country, Hiland placed 31st of 53 teams during the 54-hole event, finishing 103-over par while playing the No. 5, No. 6 and No. 7 courses at the resort.
Hiland's best day came during its third round of the event, playing on No. 5. Carter Mishler shot a 1-under par 71 with four birdies and Brookston Hummel nearly matched him by playing steady golf, carding just one bogey on his way to a 73.
Hummel was the highest individual finisher over three days for the Hawks, going 79-77-73 (+13) for a tied-58th finish. Mishler was close behind shooting 84-76-71 (+15) for tied-72nd.
Nathan Kline, Garret Shoup and Lucas Yoder also played for the Hawks at the tournament. Rivers Academy from Alpharetta, Georgia won the event with a three-day team score of 11-over.
Schlabach goes low
Along with his play on the Swartzentruber Series, Dalton senior Jaden Schlabach had been busy in tournament action on the Northern Ohio Junior PGA Series. In five of 15 events this summer, Schlabach has been a top-10 finisher. The All-Daily Record first-teamer posted the two best finishes on the tour earlier this month, highlighted by a runner-up finish at Pine Hills and a tie for third place at Fox Den. At Pine Hills, Schlabach had an impressive 1-under-par 71.
• A handful of other area boys have recorded top-10 showings on the NOPGA Junior Series over the course of the summer season with Carter Mishler of Millersburg sharing runner-up honors at Ashland Golf Club, while Devon Starcher of Wooster tying for third at Turkeyfoot Lake Golf Links and seventh at Ellsworth Meadows last month. Wooster’s Gavin Stutz (Pine Hills, 6th place; Avon Oaks, T-7th), Lucas Yoder of Millersburg (GlenMoor, T-7th; Catawba Island, T-9th) and Wooster’s Tyler Snyder (Riceland, T-9th) all recording strong finishes.
• Wooster’s Abbi Jones has also been consistent in the NOPGA Junior Series with a perfect six-for-six in top-10 showings. The 17-year-old matched her best finish of the summer earlier this week after firing an 84 to place fourth at Columbia Hills. She also was fourth at Wooster Country Club and tied for sixth at Rawiga. Wooster teammate Lizzy Hohman tied for 10th last month at Turkeyfoot Lakes.
• Northwestern standout Kylee Purdy was the lone area golfer in the field at the recent 36-hole NOPGA Junior Championship at Windmill Lakes. The returning state qualifier tied for 10th in her age division and 16th overall in the field after a 23-over 163. Purdy also took part in the first Collegiate Preview event earlier this week at Youngstown Country Club, tying for 17th overall with a 13-over 84.
No time off
Ben Cors appeared in 13 rounds for the University of Dayton in his first collegiate season, which included tying for 10th at the Atlantic-10 Championships. Despite the season still over a month away, the Wooster resident and Walsh Jesuit graduate is already gearing up for another strong fall. Cors has been busy on the summer circuit, highlighted by earning a spot in the upcoming Ohio Amateur Championship and advancing to the final day of last month's Ohio Open Championship, where he went on finish 60th with a three-day 220. Cors short a 2-over 72 in his Ohio Am Qualifier at Dayton Country Club and also just missed qualifying for the U.S. Amateur after falling eight strokes shy of an alternate spot with a 145 total.
• While Cors was the only local in the final-round field at the Ohio Open, Carter Mishler of Millersburg also had a strong showing as he just missed the cut with a 148. Doylestown's Ben Ellis had a 152, while Benton's Dylan Kaufman (156), Wooster's Carter Hahn (157) and Mason Frazier (158) also took part in the event at Westfield Country Club.
• Frazier also competed in the U.S. Amateur Qualifier at Weymouth Country Club earlier this month, missing the cut after a two-day 157 and was the top area participant at the Ohio Am Qualifier in May at Chagrin Valley.
Williams shares top prize
Paced by an impressive opening round, Wooster's Margaret Williams carded a two-round 153 total to earn co-medalist honors in the Championship Division at last month's Northeast Ohio Amateur Championship. Williams opened her appearance at Windmill Lakes Golf Club in Ravenna with a 74 which, followed by a final-day 79, helped her share the win with Rayland's Emily Holzopfel for the four-shot victory.
• Chippewa Golf Club was well represented earlier this summer at the NOPGA's Mizuno Pro-3 Junior event. Daniel Terry, the Director of Golf at Chippewa, piloted a team that also included juniors Ben Ellis, Bodie Hillwig and Ethan Kasler to a 1-under 139 at Firestone Country Club.
Upcoming events
With the prep golf season a little over a week away from starting, some of the area's top girl players will be on display at the annual Ohio Girls Golf Foundation's High School Showcase. Annie Cors of Wooster will be competing individually in the one-day event this Monday at Avon Oaks Country Club, which will feature 12 teams and 24 individuals slated to compete.
• Schlabach and Wooster's Payton Haynes are scheduled to take part in the upcoming Cleveland Summer Junior Open. The event, which will take place over two days at Fox Den Golf Course, starts this Saturday.
• Ben Cors is the lone county golfer taking part in the 116th edition of the Ohio Amateur Championship. The longstanding event opens on Monday in Cincinnati at Maketewah Country Club.
This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Golf: Tuslaw's Evan Back wins at Swartzentruber Junior Series
