Gremlins Add Title to Record-Setting Run
May 28, 2015
By Dennis Grall
Special for Second Half
IRON MOUNTAIN – The Houghton Gremlins were hoping to defend their MHSAA title while also hitting around 310 Thursday at the Upper Peninsula Division 1 boys golf championship tournament.
They easily achieved their first goal, winning their second straight crown with a 325 that put them 15 strokes ahead of perennial contender Marquette. The next four teams also were bunched, with Escanaba at 342, Gladstone 343, Negaunee 345 and Kingsford 350.
The Gremlins posted a school-best 297 two weeks ago at Houghton Portage Lake Golf Club, but coach Corey Markham warned them that approaching that mark would be difficult at challenging Pine Grove Country Club, which was founded in 1902 and ranks among the top five courses in the Upper Peninsula.
"This is a challenging course. It is really difficult," Markham said of the hilly, tree-lined par 72 layout that stretched to 6,297 yards from the blue tees.
He was more than happy with how his squad attacked Pine Grove, with teammates Gunnar Stein and Brendan Longhini finishing 1-2 with 76 and 79 strokes, respectively. Only seven other players shot fewer than 85, including Houghton's Wyatt Liston, who had 83.
That kind of depth put the Gremlins in good position to turn back any challengers. "They showed up and were solid. They were very impressive," said Markham, whose girls team won its fifth straight U.P. crown.
Markham said the success of both teams is the result of a strong junior program at Portage Lake.
"The key is they get out and play and work on their games," he said. "They chip, putt, hit the (driving) range. They strive to get better.
"We have an awesome facility and Portage Lake caters to our youth. They get to play a lot of golf. That is a big part of our success."
It also helps that the talent level is close. "They strive to beat each other. They're teammates but they still want to beat each other," he said.
Longhini is the only senior on the squad, which bodes well for the future. "They are the biggest golf nuts," said Markham. "You won't find many people out there more often than our kids. They are buddies. They love to play. They compete against each other every day for bragging rights."
Stein, who posted a career-best 70 two weeks ago when the Gremlins carded that 297, is a junior. The Gremlins had a practice round Wednesday and learned some of the tricks to play Pine Grove.
"Hitting the fairways is key," said Stein, who hit nine or 10 to miss his goal of hitting all 14 par fours and fives. He missed Nos. 12 and 17 "by a lot, and I made bogey. Otherwise I missed them by five or 10 yards."
His tee shot on the 531-yard 12th landed on the left side rough and he had to punch out from between two trees that limited his backswing.
Handling the undulating greens was also a key. He didn't sink a birdie but also didn't have any three-putt greens, with solid approach shots a key. "If you one-putt every hole it makes par a lot harder," he said.
Stein said the team's depth is a critical component to the overall success. "We qualify for our spots. It is like a tourney in itself. Qualifying is a tourney atmosphere," he said. "We're used to playing under pressure. You have to embrace it."
PHOTOS: (Top) Houghton golfers stand with their MHSAA championship trophy. (Middle) Gunnar Stein of Houghton chips out of a tough lie between trees on the 12th hole at Iron Mountain Pine Grove Country Club on Thursday at the Upper Peninsula Division 1 Final. Stein was medalist with 76 to lead the Gremlins to their second straight title. (Below) Channing Modschiedler of Menominee blasts out of the bunker on the 12th hole Thursday. He shot 89.(Photos by Dennis Grall.)
Frankfort's Newbold Cool, Calm, Contender
June 6, 2019
By Chris Dobrowolski
Special for Second Half
FRANKFORT — On the golf course, Frankfort senior Will Newbold appears to be calm, cool and collected.
It’s an outward impression that mirrors the way Newbold is feeling on the inside too.
Newbold’s easy-going demeanor has served him quite well on the links as he’s helped lead the Panthers to their fifth straight Lower Peninsula Division 4 Golf Finals appearance and sixth in the past eight years.
In a sport that can seem to break even the most stoic of players at times, Newbold doesn’t let his emotions get the best of him, taking the good with the bad in the same even-keeled fashion.
“I just feel like being able to keep your head and stay composed is a really good attribute to have,” said Newbold. “If I do mess up, I feel like I can shrug it off and get back on track. Maybe make a couple birdies and get back on track to shooting a good score.”
Good scores have been the norm for Newbold, who enters the Finals at Grand Valley State’s Meadows course as the medalist in the Northwest Conference — at 3-under in league play he was the only player under par for the year — and at the Regional he shot a 74 to win by one stroke. In fact, only two times this season has someone topped Newbold on the leaderboard.
The four-year letterwinner generally has been the Panthers’ top performer the past two years and was Frankfort’s low man in its last two trips to the Finals. He fired a 162 as a sophomore as Frankfort finished 12th. His score of 150 last year put him in a tie for eighth overall and the Panthers rose to ninth in the team standings.
The aspirations this season are for a top-five team finish, which would mark the best the Panthers’ boys golf program has ever placed.
“I always look at the state tournament as that’s the real season,” said Frankfort coach Tom Thorr. “That’s when you want to be playing your best. Our goal has always been to be in the top 10 in the state. This year you can’t help but look at the other scores in Division 4. I’m certainly hoping we have a good showing. I think it would be great if my team could finish in the top five.”
The Panthers have some good experience with seniors Jack Reznich and Riley Thorr, along with junior Luke Hammon. Sophomore Daniel Newbold, Will’s younger brother, rounds out Frankfort’s top five, but what the younger Newbold lacks in experience he makes up for with ability. He and Hammon both turned in top-10 performances at the Regional with a pair of rounds at 82.
With Will Newbold at the top of that lineup, the Panthers have a squad capable of meeting their high expectations.
“I’ve always told my kids they don’t have to shoot 70,” said Thorr. “If we can have four guys shoot 80 or 82, we’re going to make a lot of noise. But having somebody who can go out and shoot a 70-72 (like Will), it kind of gives you that latitude where you can afford a 90 or a 94 and still be really solid.”
Thorr believes his top player could be in the hunt for medalist honors as well when all is said and done.
“He’s got a chance,” Thorr said. “He’s going to have to play well. There are some good players out there, no doubt. When we get down there, we’ll see them all. He’ll have to rely on that mental game.”
It’s that mental game that has been Will Newbold’s strength and allows him to perform at such a high and consistent level, says his coach.
“Everybody’s going to have a bad shot or a bad hole, or a stretch of holes,” said Tom Thorr. “You have to have the right mentality to get through that. Like Will, if he has a bad shot or a bad hole he’s just got this uncanny ability to just kind of brush it off. ‘Oh well, I’ll get it back.’ It may not be the next hole, but he’s pretty focused. He doesn’t let a whole lot of things rattle him. His mental game is pretty solid. He hits the ball straight. He’s not super long, but he’s real consistent.”
As a collection, the Panthers are a product of their environment. Each of Frankfort’s top five players caddies at nearby Crystal Downs Country Club — a course that is consistently ranked among the best nationally and worldwide by pundits — and they frequently take advantage of the chance to play, taking on the challenging course as they’ve built up their games.
“I try to go out there every night in the summer,” said Will Newbold. “It’s fast, unforgiving. You’ve got to hit spots, or you’re going to be in trouble. The greens are really tough and really hilly. I would say it’s one of the harder (courses) in the state.”
Those daily tests, along with instruction from the likes of local PGA pros Scott Wilson and Ed Laprade, have helped a player like Newbold make huge strides in a relatively short time. Newbold started playing the game only four years ago, but now finds himself in the discussion of the best players in Division 4, with a chance to prove it on the course in his final match of his high school career.
“I’ve spent a lot of time in the summers just grinding at the range and playing golf every day,” he said. “I progressed pretty quickly. I worked so hard in the summer and in the offseason to get better. It’s good to see my hard work being rewarded.”
Chris Dobrowolski has covered northern Lower Peninsula sports since 1999 at the Ogemaw County Herald, Alpena News, Traverse City Record-Eagle and currently as sports editor at the Antrim Kalkaska Review since 2016. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Roscommon, Ogemaw, Iosco, Alcona, Oscoda, Crawford, Kalkaska, Grand Traverse, Benzie, Leelanau, Antrim, Otsego, Montmorency, Alpena, Presque Isle, Cheboygan, Charlevoix and Emmet counties.
PHOTO: Frankfort's Will Newbold, second from right, will lead a talented and experienced lineup to the Lower Peninsula Division 4 Final this weekend. (Photo courtesy of the Frankfort golf program.)