Monday, June 17, 2013

Henry Do talks about his junior career, the MHSAA and whether he would have played his senior year

There are a lot of great players in Michigan at the high school level and Henry Do is most likely the best of them. He decided to skip his last two years of high school golf and hone his competition against elite amateurs and pros in tournaments around the country. In this interview on michigangolfscene.co , he talks about it in our Monday conversation.

Saturday, June 15, 2013

Lakeland's Alex Kleckner falls to Kyle Rodes at D-1 Final in East Lansing

Video Highlights of Mr. Golf Candidates, top scores and the complete sudden death playoff. Video Highlights by
Roy J. (Joe) Akers
http://youtu.be/O88QIQNn2AI

Video Team coverage available Sunday, June 16th online here and in all Heritage Newspapers including the Oakland Press and Macomb Daily.

Compiled by staff reports
    There were two photo finishes, so to speak, on the final day of the Division 1 state boys golf tournament on Saturday at Michigan State University’s Forest Akers West.

Battle Creek Lakeview and Plymouth each finished with a two-day total of 601, but Lakeview was awarded the state title via the fifth-golfer tiebreaker.

The fifth-golfer score for Lakeview was 77, while Plymouth’s fifth score was a 79.

Novi Detroit Catholic Central was the highest Oakland County finisher, tying Muskegon Mona Shores for third with a score of 610.

Lakeland finished eighth as a team, but junior Alex Kleckner shot a 69 on the second day to finish with a two-day score of 143 and advance to a playoff that decided the individual title.

But Kyle Rodes of Plymouth beat Kleckner on the third playoff hole to win medalist honors.

In the Division 2 state tournament at Grand Valley State, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood finished third with a team score of 645. Grand Rapids Christian shot a 636 to win the team title.

Individually, Rishi Patel of Birmingham Detroit Country finished sixth with a score of 154 (75-79) and Jack Zohoury of Pontiac Notre Dame Prep was seventh with a total of 155 (75-80).

In the Division 4 state tournament at Forest Akers East, Auburn Hills Oakland Christian was the highest county finisher, tying for seventh with a score of 663.

Thursday, June 13, 2013

Michigan Open: Werkmeister becomes first amateur to win tournament since 1975 Print and video stories

WERKMEISTER FIRST AMATEUR TO WIN MICHIGAN OPEN IN 38 YEARS
Print and Video Stories below
http://youtu.be/-fPD8-bUp38


    WASHINGTON, Mich. – Tom Werkmeister, a 45-year-old internet salesman from Kentwood, is just the fifth amateur to win the Michigan Open Championship in the 96-year history of the tournament, and the first since 1975.

Great form and a strong all-around game propelled him to victory
    “It’s my biggest moment,” he said after a closing even-par round of 72 Thursday at The Orchards Golf Club left him at 13-under-par 275, two shots ahead of defending champion Barrett Kelpin, a 23-year-old mini-tour professional from Kalamazoo.

    “At this point nothing has been better than this,” said Werkmeister, who was the 2009 Michigan Amateur champion and has won every significant amateur title in the state in his career.

  “Yes, the Michigan Amateur (in 2009) is 1A probably, but to win this, in this type of field with a bunch of mini-tour players out there, that makes me feel pretty good. It is definitely the highlight.”

    Kelpin, who won the 2012 Michigan Open by eight shots with a record-tying 23-under-par total, shot 73 to close for an 11-under-par 277. He suffered bogeys at Nos. 16 and 17 by missing short three-foot par putts, and admitted his disappointment.

   “It was very disappointing that I couldn’t make those putts and keep the pressure on Tom and stay in it coming in,” Kelpin said. “Tom played great. He played better than me today. He was so steady. Hat’s off to him.”

    With Werkmeister, a dedicated amateur headed to next week’s Michigan Amateur in Muskegon with the James D. Standish Jr. Trophy for his victory, Kelpin received the $8,000 first-place money from the $50,000 purse.

Werkmeister holds the Crystal
   Andy Ruthkoski, a mini-tour player from Muskegon, and Chris Mory, a club pro from Haslett, each shot final-round 69s to tie for third at 278. They are both former Michigan State golfers, and each earned $4,000.

  Matt Pesta, a professional from Forest Lake Country Club who shot 71, was next at 281, and mini-tour pros Matt Thompson of Battle Creek, who shot 72, and Clark Klaasen of Grand Rapids, who shot 70, tied at 282 with 18-year-old Ypsilanti amateur Henry Do, who closed with a 71.

  Werkmeister said he drew added inspiration for the week from Julie Breuker, the wife of his close friend John, who last week was diagnosed with stage four brain cancer.

  “For me to be out here stressing over a four-footer for par really puts things in perspective,” he said. “It was horrifying news. To offer just a little distraction for him and his family, for me to offer that distraction, was kind of cool.”

   Werkmeister said he kept his cool through the wind-whipped round by leaning on his years of experience in competitive golf.

  “I stayed with my plan, and I never really thought I had it won until really the last hole,” he said. “I wasn’t really nervous on the last hole. I hit it in the fairway, and even though it was a tough shot with the wind to the green over water, I found my spot and hit it there. I didn’t play great, but I played steady, stayed in the lead and feel just great about it.”

   Werkmeister will defend his title at a new site next year. Kevin Helm, the executive director of the Michigan PGA, announced the Open will move to Prestwick Village Golf Club in Hartland in 2014. He also announced a new primary sponsor – LaFontaine Automotive Group. The tournament was played three years at The Orchards with DTE Energy as the presenting sponsor.

Results- to be put in a data table later. 
Place Name Representing 1 Tom Werkmeister - A Kentwood, MI 66 70 67 72 -13 275 $750.00 2 Barrett Kelpin Kalamazoo, MI 69 69 66 73 -11 277 $8,000.00 T3 Andrew Ruthkoski Muskegon, MI 69 67 73 69 -10 278 $4,000.00 Christopher Mory Haslett, MI 75 66 68 69 -10 278 $4,000.00 5 Matt Pesta Forest Lake Country Club 71 72 67 71 -7 281 $2,500.00 T6 Matt Thompson Battle Creek, MI 70 70 70 72 -6 282 $1,750.00 Clark Klaasen Grand Rapids, MI 73 72 67 70 -6 282 $1,750.00 Henry Do - A Ypsilanti, MI 69 71 71 71 -6 282 $500.00 9 Joe Juszczyk Dearborn Heights, MI 73 70 69 71 -5 283 $1,400.00 T10 John Seltzer The Polo Fields Golf & CC 70 71 72 71 -4 284 $1,250.00 Patrick Colburn - A Traverse City, MI 71 70 74 69 -4 284 $400.00 Eric Wohlfield Brighton, MI 70 67 74 73 -4 284 $1,250.00 T13 Lee Houtteman Manitou Passage Golf Club 72 69 72 72 -3 285 $1,000.00 Willie Mack III Flint, MI 75 69 72 69 -3 285 $1,000.00 Drew Preston Ada, MI 70 71 71 73 -3 285 $1,000.00 T16 Ian Harris - A Bloomfield, Hills, MI 72 70 70 74 -2 286 $350.00 Jerred Barley Tecumseh, MI 72 69 74 71 -2 286 $800.00 T18 Jeff Champine - A Rochester Hills, MI 76 74 66 71 -1 287 $300.00 Scott Hebert Grand Traverse Resort & Spa 69 71 74 73 -1 287 $760.00 20 Gary Smithson Thousand Oaks Golf Club 71 75 69 74 +1 289 $720.00 T21 TJ Roberts Walnut Hills Country Club 72 73 73 72 +2 290 $680.00 Jared Dalga -A Grand Rapids, MI 74 72 71 73 +2 290 $250.00 Kyle Wittenbach Lowell, MI 74 71 73 72 +2 290 $680.00 Mark Matz Petoskey, MI 73 75 71 71 +2 290 $680.00 T25 Josh Fryer Franklin Hills Country Club 69 71 77 74 +3 291 $630.00 Otto Black -A Pinckney, MI 71 75 75 70 +3 291 $240.00 Nigel Hawryliw Muskegon, MI 75 73 67 76 +3 291 $630.00 T28 Brian Cairns Fox Hills Golf & Banquet 74 74 70 75 +5 293 $580.00 Eric Lilleboe Okemos, MI 71 73 75 74 +5 293 $580.00 Scott Hayes Kendall Academy of Golf 71 73 71 78 +5 293 $580.00 Sean Friel - A Rochester Hills, MI 75 74 72 72 +5 293 $230.00 T32 Evan Bowser - A Dearborn, MI 75 75 70 74 +6 294 $215.00 Nick Dennis - A Waterford, MI 76 74 70 74 +6 294 $215.00 Joshua Burt Hawk Hollow 74 68 75 77 +6 294 $540.00 T35 Thomas Harding Kendall Academy of Golf 77 69 75 74 +7 295 $510.00 Tim Metko Grand Blanc, MI 73 75 74 73 +7 295 $510.00 T37 John Pershern Lochmoor Club 75 73 78 70 +8 296 $463.33 Dan Urban Grand Rapids Golf Academy 73 73 73 77 +8 296 $463.33 Brett White - A Caledonia, MI 75 69 72 80 +8 296 $190.00 Alex Wunderlich - A Ann Arbor,  MI 75 74 72 75 +8 296 $190.00 Justin Kors Whitmore Lake, MI 75 73 69 79 +8 296 $463.33 Alex Dombrowski - A Gaylord, MI 72 73 76 75 +8 296 $190.00 T43 Kyle Martin Lochmoor Club 75 73 71 78 +9 297 $430.00 Erik Schleicher  -A Grosse Pointe, MI 77 73 75 72 +9 297 $160.00 Charles Pasco Metamora Golf & CC 75 71 77 74 +9 297 $430.00 David Tokarsky Saginaw Country Club 71 74 76 76 +9 297 $430.00 Brad Bastion - A Clinton Twp, MI 70 77 75 75 +9 297 $160.00 Stephen Nichols  -A Lansing, MI 77 73 73 74 +9 297 $160.00 T49 Chris Cunningham - A Milford, MI 72 73 77 76 +10 298 $137.50 T49 Nick Cunningham - A Grand Blanc, MI 74 74 71 79 +10 298 $137.50 Jeff Bronkema Grand Rapids, MI 73 78 75 72 +10 298 $410.00 T52 Randy Erskine Great Oaks Country Club 77 73 73 76 +11 299 $395.00 Jay Jurecic Crystal Falls, MI 75 73 72 79 +11 299 $395.00 T54 Timothy Katanski Ann Arbor Golf & Outing 72 74 77 77 +12 300 $375.00 Jeff Coble Twin Lakes Golf & Swim Club 76 70 76 78 +12 300 $375.00 Brett Quitiquit - A Highland, MI 74 75 72 79 +12 300 $130.00 T57 David Nolan Timberwood Golf Club 75 74 74 78 +13 301 $350.00 Jeffrey Stalcup The Orchards Golf Club 75 75 77 74 +13 301 $350.00 Derrick Sayers Battle Creek, MI 77 74 74 76 +13 301 $350.00 Andrew Yeager - A Grand Rapids, MI 75 73 74 79 +13 301 $122.50 Jake Losey - A Grandville, MI 74 75 78 74 +13 301 $122.50 62 Eric Johnson - A Marquette, MI 79 72 77 74 +14 302 $115.00 63 Steve Brady Oakland Hills Country Club 73 77 74 79 +15 303 $330.00 64 Matthew Zavadil Oakland University Golf & 80 70 76 78 +16 304 $320.00 T65 Luke LaFave Prestwick Village Golf Club 73 77 75 80 +17 305 $305.00 Darren Husse Fenton, MI 71 75 75 84 +17 305 $305.00 Francesco Ruffino - A Bloomfield Hills, MI 73 78 79 75 +17 305 $110.00 T68 Paul Nirenberg - A West Bloomfield, MI 74 73 82 78 +19 307 $102.50 Polo Hourani  -A Lansing, MI 74 73 78 82 +19 307 $102.50 70 Zack Bialik - A Manistee, MI 76 73 76 N WD WD

 

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Player rankings for all high school boys in Michigan

Updated boys player rankings from a national organization called junior golf scoreboard. Is your player there? This week will look at all players in high school.

(65%) (25%) (10%)
Rank
Overall  
Player Name
Hometown / School attending
St/Prov
Ctry
Events
Class
Scoring Diff.
Str. of Tourn.
wins
top 5
top 10
top 20
1 58 Henry Do Ypsilanti  (UNC - Chapel Hill) MI US 4 2013 -1.11 22.52 0 0 1 2
2 62 Reed Hrynewich Muskegon  (Michigan) MI US 7 2013 -1.91 40.98 0 3 4 4
3 149 Nick Carlson Hamilton MI US 7 2015 -1.30 53.50 2 3 4 5
4 166 Sam Weatherhead Grand Rapids  (Michigan State) MI US 5 2013 -0.92 48.81 2 2 2 3
5 210   Alexander Dombrowski Gaylord  (Princeton *) MI US 7 2013 -1.44 69.44 2 4 5 7
6 364 A.J. Varekois Rockford MI US 10 2014 -0.46 71.85 0 6 9 10
7 396   Max Rispler Alto MI US 20 2014 -0.14 67.91 4 9 10 14
8 398 Andrew VanAelst Muskegon MI US 5 2013 -0.25 70.75 2 3 3 5
9 407 Donnie Trosper Canton MI US 7 2015 0.04 65.67 0 3 4 4
10 498 Kyle Rodes Plymouth  (Eastern Michigan) MI US 8 2013 0.35 68.18 1 3 3 8
11 577 Kyle Gaines Oxford  (Detroit Mercy) MI US 5 2013 0.65 68.50 0 1 3 4
12 587 Francesco Ruffino Bloomfield Hills  (Michigan State) MI US 5 2013 1.09 59.81 1 2 2 2
13 592 Charles Green Ann Arbor  (Michigan State) MI US 7 2013 0.85 65.50 0 1 3 5
14 944 Matthew Zerbel St Joseph MI US 5 2014 1.50 78.09 1 2 4 4
15 948 Brandon Barrows Lake Orion MI US 9 2015 2.14 64.68 0 3 3 4
16 1013 James Kneen White Lake MI US 8 2014 1.59 81.39 1 5 6 7
17 1168   Alex Waelchli Clarkston  (Oakland University) MI US 7 2013 2.15 77.67 2 2 4 6
18 1186 Christopher Dinh Midland MI US 6 2013 2.37 74.09 0 0 3 4
19 1202 Nicholas Mitter Brighton  (Saginaw Valley State (D-II)) MI US 8 2013 2.43 73.53 0 2 4 4
20 1304 Jacob Johnson Holt  (Oakland University) MI US 5 2013 2.26 82.57 2 2 3 4
21 1331 Joseph Becker Grosse Pointe Farms MI US 6 2013 2.64 75.67 0 0 1 4
22 1345 Adam Firavich Hartland MI US 6 2013 3.09 66.48 0 0 0 3
23 1354 Jeremy Ball Bloomfield Hills MI US 9 2014 2.78 73.64 0 2 3 3
24 1377 Corey Szmadzinski Northville MI US 10 2013 2.58 78.70 0 3 5 6
25 1396 Dean Hitt Jackson MI US 8 2013 3.19 66.74 0 0 1 3
26 1398 Jason Brandt Mason MI US 6 2015 3.06 69.47 0 0 1 2
27 1499   Preston Dooley Novi MI US 9 2013 3.39 67.57 0 0 2 5
28 1539 Ted Rider Vicksburg MI US 7 2013 3.23 72.44 0 1 4 4
29 1562   Zak Fadden Plymouth MI US 6 2014 3.78 61.82 0 0 0 2
30 1660 Dylan Deogun Orchard Lake MI US 12 2015 3.46 72.19 0 2 2 6
31 1763 David Smith Highland MI US 6 2013 2.56 95.22 1 4 5 6
32 1775 Andrew Walker Battle Creek MI US 11 2016 2.95 87.08 2 3 7 9
33 1781 Dustin Pumford St. Charles MI US 6 2014 3.75 70.32 0 0 0 1
34 1814 Jacob Flight Portage MI US 4 2013 3.62 74.83 0 1 1 2
35 1855 Matthew Alderink Battle Creek MI US 6 2015 2.99 89.98 0 2 5 6
36 1927 Nick Park Howell MI US 7 2013 3.14 89.03 1 3 5 5
37 1931 Kitwana Ashford Detroit MI US 7 2015 3.87 73.57 0 2 2 3
38 1948 Ryan Rieckhoff Plymouth MI US 4 2013 3.95 72.29 0 1 1 1
39 1966 Ryan Peruski Milan MI US 5 2013 3.92 74.14 0 0 1 3
40 1980 Spencer Lendzion Rochester Hills  (Detroit Mercy (s)) MI US 10 2013 3.72 78.99 1 2 4 6
41 2034 Spencer Schab Grand Rapids MI US 4 2016 4.12 72.11 0 0 0 2
42 2039 David DeMarois Brighton MI US 14 2014 3.80 79.04 0 2 6 9
43 2041 Garrett Johnson Bloomfield Hills MI US 6 2014 3.65 82.32 0 1 3 4
44 2125 Caleb Wittig Ann Arbor MI US 9 2013 4.09 75.61 0 2 3 5
45 2213 John Fortuna Bloomfield Hills MI US 13 2013 4.50 69.92 1 2 3 7
46 2345 Joey Hildebrand Bloomfield Hills MI US 5 2014 4.33 78.22 0 1 1 3
47 2397 Glenn Piot Canton MI US 5 2015 4.43 77.74 0 2 2 3
48 2399 Mitchell White Muskegon MI US 6 2015 4.09 85.18 1 2 3 3
49 2405 Garret Buckley Novi MI US 10 2014 4.24 82.35 0 3 4 7
50 2463 Landon Osborne Battle Creek MI US 4 2013 3.85 92.65 0 2 2 3