STM Boys Golf

After two straight State appearances and with an improved team, it was clear from the first day of tryouts that our focus would be getting to the State Finals. Our success as a team would be measured by whether or not we made a third appearance and, if so, how we finished. So, it is with great satisfaction that we add a third place state trophy to the growing collection of athletic achievements at St. Thomas More!

Playing at State, with the toughest competition in the state, can bring out your best or bring you to your knees. That is why it is so important for our players to play against tough competition during the summer and during the IHSA season. The more accustomed we are to the stresses of high level competition, the better we will be prepared for it in the State Finals. While it was nice to finish our regular season undefeated in non-tournament competitions, our season schedule was not nearly as tough as we would have liked. In all reality, the season record carries no significant importance. It all comes down to the State Series (Regionals, Sectionals, and State) and we would do much better to play against more class 2A and 3A schools and take some losses. Every effort will be made next year to toughen the schedule and include more 18 hole tournaments.

This year, the State Tournament weather was about as good as you can hope for. We had two days of relatively mild temperatures, low winds, and no rain. We came to play with four experienced players, each with four previous state tournament rounds: Ryan Murphy, Ian Tate, Clark Schmidt, and Jeff Nogle. Also playing for STM, and playing in their first State tournament rounds were sophomore Wil Baillon, and freshman Nathaniel Khachaturian. Both of these young players, like the other four, earned their starts with solid play all season long.

Our State experience this year began early on Thursday morning. We were assigned the very first tee times for the Thursday practice round—usually the closest schools to Bloomington get the early times, with those who have the furthest to travel getting the later (warmer) times. The early times were great for us as they helped us prepare for the actual conditions we would start with, and gave us plenty of time to get situated in our hotel, make the coaches meeting, and take care of other details.

That evening our team enjoyed a truly special and classy experience of a team meal at the stately Bloomington Country Club. Coach Tim Murphy set this up well in advance and reserved the Director’s Room for our team. We were seated in the wood paneled private room at a huge oval table that seated our entire team of 12, plus the coaches, their wives, Steve Khachaturian, and Jamie Fairbanks. We had a chance to reflect on the year and give the boys a chance to share their thoughts. The highlight, however, was listening to Jamie Fairbanks talk about his two state individual championships, one of which also included a state team championship. He described how his final round got off to a bad start, but how he hung in and turned it around. He told how he made the state tournament’s only hole-in-one (a record that I think still stands today) and how he made a tricky downhill putt on the last hole, knowing that he needed to make it to win both the individual and team championships! Jamie couldn’t have been more inspiring or encouraging. I think our players will remember that talk as long as they live. I know I will.

Team Dinner at Bloomington Country Club. Guest Speaker, Jamie Fairbanks.

The tournament started the next morning, and the stats and details are pretty well reported on the IHSA web site. Leading STM was Ryan Murphy with a terrific one over par 73 performance. Ryan was in the second group off the front tee and he gave the team a great start. Unfortunately, it was a rough day for most of the other STM players. The other exception was Jeff Nogle. Jeff, starting on the treacherous back nine, was one under par through the first four holes. He bogied 14 and 15, but picked up a birdie and finished the first nine holes with a 37. By the time he reached the 7th hole, Jeff was at two over par with just two to play. Coach Murphy caught up with Jeff at this point and was desperately needing some good news. Jeff managed a par on 8 and a bogie on 9. His 3 over par 75 tied his personal best, which was quite an achievement to do at State.

Adding to Ryan’s 73 and Jeff’s 75, were Nathaniel Khachaturian who carded an 82 and Clark Schmidt who posted an 83. The team’s combined score of 313 was good enough to put us in second place, just two strokes behind Byron.

Day two of the tournament was a gut grinder for STM. Ryan Murphy, shooting a two over par 74, received support this time from Ian Tate, who tallied a four over 76. Nathaniel Khachaturian brought in an 83, and Clark Schmidt an 88. The team total of 321 was significantly higher than they were accustomed to, and two strokes behind second place Waterloo Gibault. Byron maintained their first place position, bettering their first day performance by six strokes, shooting a 305 for the day. They won the state team championship by a margin of 16 strokes.

Ryan Murphy had a terrific tournament. He played with skill, composure, and class and earned a seventh place state medal. Nathaniel Khachaturian, just a freshman, turned in two solid counting rounds for STM - an 82 and an 83. This is a great accomplishment for such a young player. Nathaniel brings a lot to this team, and he will be a huge factor for STM over the next three years. Clark Schmidt also posted two counting rounds. Ian Tate, who struggled on day one, came back with a solid mid-seventies score on day two, and Jeff Nogle, as already mentioned, posted one of his best ever scores of 75. Wil Baillon did not figure into the scoring, but racked up valuable experience. There is no doubt he will be on the scoreboard in future years.

Ryan Murphy. 7th Place Individual Finish!

The team loses only one player to graduation next year, senior Jeff Nogle. With another year of hard work and summer tournament experience, this now seasoned and experienced team will be a formidable force next year, and the years to come.

The third place trophy will accompany the second place hardware brought home by the girls team this year. STM is certainly becoming very well known for athletics, and golf in particular.

Jim Nogle
STM Boys Golf

STM BOYS GOLF TEAM —3rd PLACE FINISH!

“Dare we say ‘State?’” was the question that STM coach Tim Hoss proposed three years ago to his very young golf team at the start of the season. With a couple experienced players and a very talented freshman class, Hoss saw that the team had definite potential. However, making the state tournament, was still a considerable reach for such a young team. These guys are competitors, though, and the team sneaked through Regionals and Sectionals with third place finishes in each. They made it to State, hardly believing that they were really there as a team.

Three years later, the Sabers are returning for their third consecutive appearance, having finished 15th the first year and tying for sixth last year. Now they are experienced and respected, and seriously contending for the championship trophy. Even though they are confident of their abilities, knowledge of the course and the tournament procedures, they also know that they have strong competition. There are a number of excellent teams that will be advancing to the tournament, and each is very capable of winning the trophy. The Sabers are pleased to be considered one of them and the boys are expecting a very tight competition.

Please Come and Watch:
Parents and fans are encouraged to come and watch the tournament at Prairie Vista. Please read the Rules for Spectators and understand that any communication with the players that could be deemed as advice is forbidden. This includes the time when the players are at the clubhouse between nines. The consequences could be a penalty or disqualification of the player or ejection of the spectator. Please be very conservative, keep your distance from the players, and refrain from communications. It is OK to ask the observer for a score update and you can pass snacks and drinks to your player through the observer.

In years past, spectators have been prohibited from carrying cell phones or pagers on the course. I have not seen that in this year’s rules, however, please anticipate that this may be enforced. If you do carry a cell phone, be sure that the ringer is turned off!

Golf Carts Not Available for Spectators: While carts have been available for spectators at the Regional and Sectional events, they are not permitted at State. If you have an injury or handicap, you may qualify for an exemption.

Live Scoring on the Internet: If you can’t make it to watch in person, you can follow the tournament on the Internet. Player’s scores are updated every three holes. Just go to:

www.IHSA.org

Select Boys Golf and on the right hand side of the page you will find State Final Scoreboard. By Friday, a link should be available to the live internet scoring of the tournament.

Jim Nogle
STM Boys Golf

Sabers Win First Sectional Golf Title

Going into the Tuscola Sectional, the Sabers were primarily concerned about two teams that could prove to be obstacles for their advancement to State: St. Anthony and Monticello. Both teams are well coached and have players who can score low. St. Anthony is a frequent competitor at the state tournament. They placed second last year and have several state trophies under the coaching of Phil Zaccari. Monticello’s Corbin Sebens was medalist at the Harrison Park Regional, and the team has a couple of other players who regularly score in the seventies. With only two teams advancing to the state tournament this year, instead of three as it has been in the past, the Sabers could not let their guard down.

With forecasts of high winds, earlier in the week, and previous experience of cold and wind at the Tuscola Sectional two years ago, everyone was very pleased to have warm and sunny conditions on Saturday. The wind turned out to be pretty much a non factor and the course was in good condition.

Players were scheduled for tee times based upon their Regional scores. Competitors played in groups of three, which significantly speeded up play compared to previous sectional tournaments. The lowest Regional scores went last off of the front tees. Clark Schmidt was the first to tee off for the Sabers, at 9:00 a.m., followed by Jeff, Nathaniel, Will, Ian, and Ryan. All STM players started on the first tee.

With the best players coming in last on 18, and with Ryan in the final group, everyone huddled around the scoreboard as new computerized sheets were posted every few minutes. With little information available about the players still on the course, a lot of guessing was going on. From the beginning, it looked pretty good for STM. St. Anthony had some good scores and so did Monticello, but STM was in the lead.

Out on the course, on the 16th hole, one of the players in the lead group lost his last ball. Ryan Murphy, confident in his knowledge of the rules of golf, quietly handed JaMichael (Morgan Park Academy) a ball so that he could finish the round. Some watching the group were worried that this might violate one of the many rules in the the book, but it was perfectly legal and the gentlemen thing to do. Later, the Morgan Park Academy coach found Coach Murphy to compliment him on Ryan’s sportsmanship and Saber’s team.

Our team’s primary objective was to advance to State, so first place honors were not the focus. But, as the final group made it to the 17th hole, word came back that Ryan was still at even par. This meant that the Sabers were going to advance, that was assured, and that the Sectional trophy was probably going home with us as well!

But there was a lot more drama to be played out. The low score on the board was also an even par 72. Derrick Herschberger, senior from Arcola, had been in the clubhouse for well over an hour, anticipating a medalist award. With Ryan on hole 17, and on the green in regulation, there was a good chance that we would have a playoff. As the final group reached the 18th tee, just in view from the clubhouse, it became well known that Ryan needed a par to force a playoff, or a birdie to win. His tee shot was solid and well placed, but his iron to the green was slightly long of the tricky two tiered green. He was in the rough, just above the fringe, on the top tier. The hole was in the bottom tier. His chip was good, but Ryan was left with a 7 foot putt that was certainly not easy. Not knowing that he had to make the putt to make a playoff, Ryan simply studied his line as he would any other, took his stance, and made his stroke. It was a perfect roll and the ball dropped in, dead center. Only after he left the green did Ryan learn that he was tied for the lead.

With a couple groups still finishing on hole number 9, the playoff was delayed for about 15 minutes. Herschberger had to wait it out with Ryan until the OK was given to the pair to tee off. The sudden death playoff was to start on hole #1, then move to #18 if necessary, and then back to one, etc.

The playoff went 4 holes before a winner was determined. They both pared #1, then #18, and then #1 again. Ryan found himself making several stressful putts to tie. On #18, their fourth playoff hole, both competitors had good tee shots, but Ryan’s was about 30 yards longer. Herschberger had a good shot to the green, landing just about at the green/fringe margin on the front right corner. Unfortunately, Ryan pulled his iron shot, finding the left front bunker instead. The lie was not easy, requiring a stance outside of the bunker, with the ball significantly below his feet. Ryan made a really good shot, and it played out to about 15 feet below the hole. But, with Herschberger waiting to tap in, it was obvious that he would have to save par to stay alive. The 15’ putt was a good one, but just a bit off. Derrick got his par, and with it the medalist title. This was a great playoff and both competitors played courageously.

With that decided, the awards were finally made inside the clubhouse. Medals were awarded to Ryan Murphy and Clark Schmidt and the Sectional Trophy to the Saint Thomas More Sabers. This was the first Sectional trophy for STM Boys Golf. Monticello’s Corbin Sebens (77) advanced along with teammate Cameron Magsamen (79) and Willy Wilner of Judah ( 76).

Effingham St. Anthony advances as a team in second place.

Team Scores:

STM Sabers307
St. Anthony319
Monticello323
Arcola334
Bismarck-Henning348
Sullivan345
Dwight363
Beecher368
Morgan Park Academy381

Now on to the State Tournament!!

Fourteen teams competed at Harrison Park on Tuesday for the opportunity to advance to the Sectional Tournament at Tuscola, this Saturday. With perfect playing conditions, we were anticipating some low scores.

All 6 STM players were loaded in the first six tee times on the first tee, and our non-playing team members were assigned fore caddy positions to help spot balls. Most of our players got off to a good start, and as a team, we were under par after the first several holes. At the turn, we were leading the nearest competing team by four strokes.

I was largely unaware of what was happening with our team, as I was serving as an observer for another group of players. Occasionally, I got a report or two, and things sounded good until about half way through the back nine. I passed near Coach Murphy and he commented that he just hoped we would advance to Sectionals. That was a shocker, since we had such a good start. I don’t think he was totally serious, but he was clearly not happy. The trend was not good. At about this point, he told Nathaniel Khachaturian that he needed 4 pars out of the next four holes. Nathaniel delivered just that. Messages were conveyed among the players to turn it up and to their credit, they did.

Our final scores were not as low as we anticipated on this course, but they were very respectable. Ryan Murphy, our team leader, came in with a one over par 72 and our highest score was an 84. Our team total tallied at 309, good enough to eclipse a solid Monticello squad by five strokes. There was quite a battle for third place. Salt Fork, Fisher, and Bismark Henning were all sweating out the last scores as they came in. At one time, everyone figured that Fisher secured the chance to advance, then it became clear that Salt Fork beat them by one stroke, and then finally, Bismark Henning posted a surprise and sneaked in before Salt Fork and Fisher..

STM was the first place team with a 309, and Monticello safely advanced in second place with a 314. Bismark-Henning posted a 331, Salt Fork brought in a 333, and Fisher tallied a 334. Medalist Honors went to Corbin Sebens who played an excellent even par round of 71, just beating out Ryan Murphy for the honors.

Final Scoring – Click to Enlarge

Scoring for STM were: Ryan Murphy – 72, Ian Tate 78, Nathaniel Khachaturian 79, and Wil Baillon with an 80. Not contributing to the team score were Jeff Nogle with an 82 and Clark Schmidt with an 84. A couple of things to note here about our scores. First, as a team all 6 of our scores were lower than 85, and we were well positioned for a fifth man tie breaker. Should Monticello have tied our 309, Jeff’s 82 was 4 strokes better than Monticello’s 5th man, and 6 better than Bismark’s.

So, the Sabers come away with a well earned Regional Trophy (our second straight) and our focus now shifts to Tuscola and the Sectional Tournament. Three Regionals feed this Sectional: Effingham – St. Anthony, Bismark-Henning (ours), and Beecher. Three teams advance from each sectional, so we will compete against 8 other teams, and approximately 25 individuals. Here are the teams, and their Regional scores, who are competing for the two advancing team positions from the Tuscola Sectional:

Effingham St. Anthony – 305
St. Thomas More – 309
Monticello – 314
Bismark – Henning – 331
Arcola – 326
Morgan Park Academy – 349
Sullivan – 352
Dwight – 355
Beecher – 365

Tuscola can play very difficult if the wind is blowing, as it often does at this course. Our team is pretty seasoned and they play well when the conditions are tough. So, don’t worry about the forecast that is already calling for strong winds on Saturday!

Jim Nogle
STM Boys Golf

Thanks to Mark Tate and Stevie Jay for the accompanying photographs!

The Sabers arrived early at Brookhill, in order to warm up for the tournament and assist the girl’s team with tournament hosting duties. Thick fog enveloped the course during the warm ups, and players blasted drivers down the driving range, not really knowing if they were hitting straight or not! The planned 9:00 a.m. shot gun was postponed for about 20 minutes in order for the fog to lift. By 10:00 a.m. the fog was completely gone, replaced with a beautiful blue sky and perfect golfing conditions.

The tournament began with a shotgun start, with players paired in fouresomes according to submitted averages. With the best season averages in the field, the STM boys were slotted in the first six groups. In the lingering fog, the team got off to a good start, with no early train wrecks. This being the second time on the course in the last week or so, STM was familiar with the territory. We were playing from the tips in this event, so the course was playing a bit longer. Pin locations, were a bit more kind this time, and the putting statistics should show better results.

The player averages, as presented to the conference, clearly revealed that STM had a significant talent advantage. Our goal, therefore, was to play up to our team’s standards, improve our statistics, and be recognized as good sports as well as talented golfers. Our boys handled themselves very well, making friends and earning respect from the other players.

When the results came in, STM’s Ryan Murphy claimed Medalist honors with a 75. All five of his teammates also placed in the top 10. Our team score matched our score from the Rantoul Invitational: 312. This time we posted a 75 and three 79s. A copy of the score sheet is included in one of the photos, Watseka took 2nd place with a 349 and Momence collected third place honors with a 371. The STM girls team also took first place in the girls tournament, making it a very successful day for STM Golf!!

Following the event, Leonard Schmidt treated the boys team to a great meal at the landmark restaurant, Otts, in Rantoul. The diner, which usually closes at 2:00, stayed open late just for us. The team enjoyed a great meal and an opportunity to relax after the tournament.

Thanks again to Mr. Schmidt and Ott’s Restaurant!

Jim Nogle
STM Boys Golf

The Sabers traveled to Clinton on Wednesday, protecting a perfect non-tournament record of 17-0. Clinton also has a good record, and plays very well on their own turf, a nine-hole country club on the south side of town. The course is really quite pretty, with some tricky three dimensional holes. It is fairly short, but for a team who has never seen it before, it can be a challenge.

The scheduled triangular meet became a dual contest when Tri-Valley failed to show. On an evening great for golf, the match began at about 4:30, with three groups teeing off the first tee. The course was challenging for some of our players, and our overall team performance was not up to the standards that we have come to expect. But the team score of 157 was sufficient to collect one last victory before the conference tournament in Rantoul. Clinton scored a 174.

Scoring for STM were: Medalist Ryan Murphy 36, Ian Tate 38, Nick Thompson 41, and Clark Schmidt 42.

Following the round the team met at the Clinton Monicals for pizza before heading back to Champaign.

Jim Nogle
STM Boys Golf

The Sabers hosted our Class 1A rival, St. Anthony at the Urbana Golf and Country Club on Monday. This event was a dual meet with just St. Anthony, but the girls conducted their own match on the course as well. The girls team took the front nine while the boys used the back nine. The course is closed on Mondays, so we had it almost completely to ourselves. This was also Senior Night for our team, as it is our last home meet. Lone senior, Jeff Nogle, gave his mom a rose after the round and thanked her for her steadfast support over the last four years.

Jeff and Galyle Nogle
Jeff is the lone senior this year.

St. Anthony has had a long successful history, and they are not used to losing, especially three times to the same team in one season. Clearly, they wanted to win this match, and clearly, so did we. They brought 8 players and we agreed to a match where all 8 players were available to score. This proved helpful to St. Anthony, as their 7th and 8th men brought in two of their four counting scores!

Once again, Ryan Murphy led all STM scores with a terrific round. Ryan started on 13, and began with three straight pars, then a birdie, and an eagle!. After five holes, Ryan was 3 under par. On hole 10, he picked up another birdie, and just missed a birdie put on 11. On his final hole, #12, he had to punch out from under some trees, and tallied his only bogie of the day, to finish with a three under par, 33! Nathaniel added a 38, Ian brought in a 39, and Nogle and Schmidt each added 42s. STM had a team total of 152, beating St. Anthony’s 156 by 4 strokes.

Until this year, I don’t believe that STM has ever beaten St. Anthony’s. They still have good program and a strong team, but the dominance has shifted, as we have collected all three victories this year. What really matters, however, is how we compare in the coming state tournament series. We will most likely meet up with them again at the Sectional Tournament in Tuscola, and hopefully, again at the State Tournament.

STM’s match record now stands at 17 – 0 with one final round to be played at Clinton, on Wednesday before the Thursday, Conference Tournament.

This event also marked our final cookout of the year. Once again the STM support team of parents came through with a great meal with tons of food and deserts. With the club closed, this one was a bit more difficult to pull off as we had to bring out our own grill and tables. It all went very well, however, and once again thanks to all of those who brought food and assisted. Support like this helps show that we have one of the very best high school golf programs in the state.

Jim Nogle
STM Boys Golf

The Rantoul Invitational is a great opportunity to prepare for post season tournaments. With two back to back 18 hole rounds, and good competition, it is a great test. We were very pleased to enter two teams in this event and play all 12 STM players.

14 teams competed over the two days, with Marion Catholic traveling the furthest. This team, from Chicago Heights, IL won the event last year, easily. This is a big school—over 1500 students which puts them easily into Class 3A. They placed 11th in the Class AA tournment at State last year (in 2006 it was a 2 class sport—this is the first year for 3 classes in boys golf).

The first round was played at Brookhill. What is usually a fairly easy course played quite difficult. The tees were back and the pins were often located on knobs. Scores, were therefore a bit higher than most anticipated. Clark Schmidt, playing on his home course, led SM with a 77. He got help from Wil Baillon and Nathaniel Khachaturian with a pair of 78s, followed by Ryan Murphy and Ian Tate with two 79s. Showing our depth, STM posted 5 scores in the seventies. Marion Catholic, with three sub-80 rounds, still led after round one, however, on the strength of a 74 and two 76s. The runaway leaders, after round one were: Marion Catholic 307 and STM 312.

Though round one utilized a shotgun start, at Willow Pond, the Saturday match began with tee times. The time slots were predetermined before the tournament began so similar scores were not matched for on course pairings. And, due to poor luck or some other reason, no STM players were paired with Marion Catholic golfers. So, during the course of round, it was nearly impossible to tell how we were doing in comparison to the leaders.

Ryan Murphy was clearly having a good round. He was under par for most of the day, starting with three birdies on the first four holes! He finished the front nine 3 under, but ran into some trouble on the back, collecting four bogies and one more birdie. He came to the 18th hole, at even par, but the 18th was playing very dificult. The pin on the steeply sloped green was placed at the bottom, and balls were barely holding on the green. STM players were advised to play the hole short, keeping the ball well below the hole. Ryan’s tee shot, however, landed 15 feet above the hole, and his delicate tap came close, but ran all of the way down to the fringe. To save his even par round, Ryan needed a long difficult uphill put. He took an aggressive stroke and nailed the back of the cup, with the ball popping straight up and falling back straight in for a dramatic par to finish at 72.

Ian Tate also had a good round. Although, he was unable to pick up any birdies, he consistently made pars, giving up only 4 bogies and no double bogies. This translated to a 76. Freshman, Nathaniel Khachaturian , also had a pretty clean round, coming in with a 79. Our fourth score came from Clark Schmidt who posted an 80. STM’s total matched Marion Catholic’s from the day before, 307, and tied their Saturday score. The end result, Marion maintained their slim 5 stroke lead and took the first place trophy.

Joe Smith (Centennial) won the individual title, turning in a 4 under par 68 for his final round at Willow Pond.

There is no doubt that the STM Sabers can compete with any high school team in the state. They took on a team from a much larger school, four times our size, and played them to a five stroke margin over two days with 12 scoring rounds. That is pretty close! This was a good test for our boys which reminds them that they must work hard to be the best. They know they can play better and I think they will continue to improve.

Playing our last match at Stone Creek this season, the Sabers hosted CPCI and Bismark on September 19th. The teams arrived early, allowing for a shotgun start at about 3:45 p.m..

The weather was excellent for a high school golf match on the beautiful Stone Creek Golf Course. Our team is very fortunate to have the opportunity to play here, and our opponents are eager to schedule with us at Stone Creek.

Keeping our match record perfect, the Sabers defeated Bismark and CPCI, moving to a record of 16 and 0. STM brought in a team score of 157, against Bismark’s 178 and CPCI’s 199.

Scoring for STM were: Ian Tate with a 37 (Medalist), Nick Thompson carded a 38, Ryan Murphy brought in a 39, and Clark Schmidt and Tim Holcom each shot a 43.

With the assistance of all of our teams parents, and many from the girls team, STM hosted our second post match cookout. Again this was very well received by the attending teams, who otherwise, would have to stop for fast food somewhere along the ride home. Thank you to everyone who provided food and helped with the cook out!

The photos accompanying this article were furnished by Mark Tate and myself. STM Golf Team alumnus, Sam Wells, joined us on the Stone Creek patio as the scores came in.

Jim Nogle
STM Boys Golf

STM adds two more wins to its record (now 14 and 0) as we beat Watseka and Schlarman in a triangular meet at Stone Creek.

STM 151
Scharman 185
Watseka 194

Ian Tate lead all scoreres to take medalist honors with a one under par 35! Ryan Murphy was just one stroke behind with an even par 36, and Clark Schmidt and Nick Thompson rounded out our scoring four with 40s each. This brings our team record to 14 and 0. Most teams keep invitational tournaments in a separate category. Therefore, our first place finish at Windsor doesn’t figure into the 14 – 0 team record. I wish there was a better way of doing this.

While our boys were taking care of business on the course, our team moms and dads were busy preparing the post match cookout. Stone Creek was kind enough to lend us their patio and grill and just about every team family helped out in one way or another. Special thanks go to the grill team of Ernie Baillon, John Thompson, and Tom Roth. Also lending assistance were Gayle Nogle, Beth Baillon, Sharon Roth, Kim Murphy, Mary Kay Thompson, Mary Tate, Debbie Schmidt, and Sue Jean (plus several I probably missed). The cookout was a big success and much appreciated by the teams who have long trips home.

Thanks everyone for all of your contributions and assistance. We do it all again on Wednesday night and then on Monday, our final home meets.

Mark Tate provided the following photos.

Saturday morning started as forecast….. clear and cold. It was 36 degrees when our entire team met at the Schnucks parking lot at 6 a.m., but our boys were prepared and properly dressed. The temperature was not a significant factor. In fact, the day turned out to be a very comfortable and beautiful day for golf.

The back 9 at Angus Links gives a lot of high school players the shudders. The course pro, Andy Wagner, told coach Murphy that the back nine averages about 6 or 7 strokes higher for the average golfer. The tendency to pull out the driver must be overcome if you are going to score well on this series of holes.

Our squad was split into two six man teams, STM A and STM B. The A team was composed of: Ryan Murphy, Ian Tate, Clark Schmidt, Jeff Nogle, Wil Baillon, and Nathaniel Khachaturian. Team B: Ben Dodds, Nick Thompson, Derek Roth, Tim Holcomb, Aaron Beckemeyer, and Zack Johnson. The tournament began with a shotgun start at about 8:30 a.m.

It seemed that everyone either started on a hard hole or ended on one, with holes 1, 10, 11, 16 and 18 being the most intimidating. The start, however, seemed to be a good one for STM A. As the players moved around the course, Coach Murphy and I shuttled back and forth keeping tabs on as many as we could. We were pleased that our guys were keeping it together and playing pretty well. Wil Baillon, Clark Schmidt, Ian Tate, and Ryan Murphy seemed to have the best rounds going early. Wil and Clark both played their first nine holes at even par, Ryan was just two over after nine, and Ian was one under par, and moved to two under par, early on the back nine. Jeff made it through his first 9 holes at 4 over. Nathaniel, the only STM player on Team A not to have ever played the course before, received a rude introduction to Angus. He tripled his first hole, #4, and took a double on #5.

Soon, however, the back nine began to take its toll. Bogies and double bogies started to mar up the score cards. Clark found the water on hole #11 and Ryan had picked up doubles on 15, 16, and 18, Jeff found the creek on 10 and doubled. Ian’s two under par, evaporated as he bogied 12, and took quads on 13 and 18. It was nerve wracking to see how fast things were turning, but our boys kept their cool and they did not give up.

Our primary competition this year was St. Anthony, the perennial champion of this tournament. It was obvious, watching their players, that they were also having problems with the numerous large trees and hazards. As the tournament entered the last several holes, it was clear that no team, or individual, was tearing up the course.

As the groups came in at the end of the round, the scores were posted on the scoreboard. STM’s scores looked good in comparison to all of the others coming in, and it was soon obvious that the first place trophy, perhaps for the first time, was not going to Effingham! It was going to Champaign! STM team B, also posted some very respectable numbers. Nick Thompson led the B team with an 81, Tim Holcomb posted an 87, Aaron Beckemeyer shot a 90, and Ben Dodds rounded out the second team scoring with a 94, for a team total of 354.

STM collected the first place trophy with a very respectable team score of 312. Counting for STM A were: Clark Schmidt with a 75, Wil Baillon with a 78, Jeff Nogle with a 79, and Ian Tate with an 80. Ryan and Nathaniel posted 83 and 87, respectively.

We beat the second place team, St. Anthony (327), by 15 strokes. They do have a very good team and our boys should be careful not to discount them in our future meetings this year. We will see them next at Urbana on Monday, Sept. 24. Clark Schmidt just missed medalist honors by one stroke. Andrew Jorn, from Hillsboro, collected that trophy with a 3 over par 74.

This was the first time at Angus Links for several of our players. Golfers who haven’t previously played this course are definitely at a disadvantage. Nathaniel Khachaturian, for one, was eager to go right back out and conquer the tract the next day. Next season, I know there are several STM players who want their revenge on Angus Links. Like Nathaniel, I suspect that a couple might just go down on their own to settle the score before then.

SCORING:

5 STM players made the top 10 list:

Clark Schmidt 75 (2nd)
Wil Baillon 78 (4th)
Jeff Nogle 79 (5th / T)
Ian Tate 80 (8th)
Nick Thompson 81 (9th)

Team Scores:
1 STM (A) 312
2 St. Anthony 327
3 Hillsboro 339
4 Arcola/Arthur 347
5 STM (B) 352
6 T-Town 354
7 Sullivan 355
8 Shelbyville 361
9 Belcher / Altamont 372
10 Okaw Valley / Lovington 411

Jim Nogle
STM Boys Golf