Emeralds Complete Their Half of Title Sweep with Team, Individual Champs
By
Jason Juno
Special for MHSAA.com
May 31, 2023
NORWAY – Manistique’s Ryan McEvers said he would have been happy with a score in the 80s at Wednesday’s Upper Peninsula Division 2 Final.
That makes sense, considering his coach Tim Noble couldn’t remember him recording a score in the 70s at a tournament before.
McEvers, a junior, stepped up at the right time, shooting an incredible 74 at Oak Crest. That score won him the Division 2 individual title and pushed the Emeralds to the team championship.
Had he shot in the 80s, Manistique would have finished behind Painesdale Jeffers, which ended three strokes back in second place.
Noble thought a Manistique boys and girls team title sweep was possible. But he admitted he was more confident in the girls, who won as well Wednesday.
That is, until McEvers shot an even-par 36 on the front nine, the best of anyone on the course.
“I knew we were suddenly in it for the boys,” Noble said.
It was the Emeralds’ first team championship since 2007.
They did it with two players in the 70s – Landon Dougherty shot a 78. Manistique finished with a score of 331, while Jeffers was at 334. The Jets were led by individual runner-up Todd Rautiola, who carded a 76.
Jeffers didn’t have anyone else in the 70s, though. They didn’t have anybody have a day like McEvers, whose personal best in any round of golf before Wednesday was a 78.
“I’d be happy shooting in the 80s today,” he said. “But the guys that I was playing with were fun, and I felt really good about it. I didn’t look at my scorecard until the end, and it all added up nicely.”
Noble said he was texting McEvers’ dad updates all day – “and he couldn’t believe it.” McEvers’ teammates surrounded him afterward, and they expressed their disbelief as well.
“I think I counted I only had two bad shots,” McEvers said. “My drives were straight. Putting from the fringe probably saved me a lot. But it was all coming together nicely.”
Oak Crest may have lent a helping hand.
“This course is made for a player like Ryan – short, precision,” Noble said.
Norway’s Carson Chartier shot a 77 to finish third. Hancock’s Jackson Sintkowski shot a 78 to match Dougherty in fourth.
PHOTOS (Top) Manistique, including individual medalist Ryan McEvers, celebrate Wednesday’s championship sweep. (Middle) Norway's Carson Chartier chips toward the green at Oak Crest. (Below) The Emeralds’ Grant Mason follows his shot. (Photos by Jason Juno.)
Back to Full Strength, Menser Eager to Show Full Talent with Title Pursuit
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
June 6, 2024
For a while this spring, Detroit Catholic Central senior golfer Julian Menser probably wondered if he was going to be spending more time in the hospital than on the golf course.
Up until the initial days of May, Menser had a terrible bout of mononucleosis, and treatment days were more common than sessions on the driving range or putting green.
“After I was done with the symptom part, I would be out practicing and I’d all of a sudden get hit with random fatigue,” said Menser, who said he also suffers from asthma. “It would hijack what I was trying to get done.”
Fortunately, it appears as if his senior season will have a happy ending after the slow start.
Menser is not only healthy, but is playing superb golf heading into this weekend’s Lower Peninsula Division 1 Final at Bedford Valley in Battle Creek.
The happiest conclusion would be for Menser to close his high school career with an individual championship – and the way he’s been playing, it’s quite possible.
On May 15 at the Oakland County tournament, Menser fired a 7-under par round of 65 at Fieldstone Golf Club in Auburn Hills to win the medalist honor going away.
Last week in his Regional tournament at Twin Lakes, Menser shot a 6-under par round of 66 to win the medalist honor and lead the Shamrocks to the team title.
Signed to play next for Michigan State, Menser is rightfully full of confidence.
“I’m playing well, but I just try to look at it that golf can change and how you are playing can change every single morning when you wake up,” Menser said. “I don’t really look at it as, ‘I shot this then’ or ‘I played this well here.’ I don’t really look at it like that. I just kind of look at it as coming into this tournament it means a lot to me, and the team wants to win. I just prioritize that.”
Menser hopes to also rebound from what was a disappointing result by his expectations at last year’s MHSAA Tournament.
After finishing eighth individually two years ago as a sophomore, Menser couldn’t crack the top 10 last season.
“I didn’t really play how I wanted to play last year,” Menser said. “I honestly felt like I let the guys down on the team last year. I felt good going into last year. I just didn’t execute how I was trying to or play like I was trying to. But that’s golf.”
Menser has been on varsity since his freshman year, and Catholic Central head coach Mike Anderson said it’s hard to tell what has grown more, his game or his body.
Anderson said Menser has grown about seven inches since his freshman year, which is allowing him to hit the ball a ton now in addition to having an outstanding short game, putter and intelligence around the course.
“He’s very mature for his age,” Anderson said. “He’s got great golf mechanics. He thinks his way around the course well. He’s a fantastic young man. Very smart.”
Menser will have a busy summer circuit before heading to MSU, where he hopes to follow in the footsteps of past Catholic Central golfer James Piot by having an unforgettable career with the Spartans.
Piot also became well-known when he won the U.S. Amateur and played on the LIV Golf tour.
“I think those footsteps are ones that anyone would want to follow in,” Menser said.
Keith Dunlap has served in Detroit-area sports media for more than two decades, including as a sportswriter at the Oakland Press from 2001-16 primarily covering high school sports but also college and professional teams. His bylines also have appeared in USA Today, the Washington Post, the Detroit Free Press, the Houston Chronicle and the Boston Globe. He served as the administrator for the Oakland Activities Association’s website from 2017-2020. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Detroit Catholic Central’s Julian Menser putts during last season’s Lower Peninsula Division 1 Final. (Middle) Menser sends a shot out of the deep rough at The Meadows at Grand Valley State. (Click for more from High School Sports Scene.)