Norway's Kelly, St. Ignace Score D2 Titles
June 2, 2016
By Dennis Grall
Special for Second Half
NORWAY – There was considerable squirming at Oak Crest Golf Club on Thursday, and we're not even talking about the players who put on a good run for medalist honors.
No, the parents of the top two contenders tried to keep their emotions in check while taking the roller coaster ride as their sons battled for first place at the MHSAA Upper Peninsula Division 2 boys golf tournament.
Eventually, Tom and Michelle Kelly of Norway had a chance to exhale as their son Bryce emerged as medalist with a 78 to slip past 2015 champion Riley Thompson by a stroke. Kelly parred the last two holes while Iron River West Iron County's Thompson had a two-putt bogey-4 on No. 17 and then hit a short chip shot for a tap-in par-4 on the last hole.
Both contenders had a topsy-turvy back nine, to their chagrin and that of their parents. Kelly bogeyed holes 11-12-13 and doubled 15 while Thompson went double bogey-bogey to start and then hit an eagle-3 on No. 3 to pull within a stroke. He lost a stroke with a bogey on 14 but got one back with par on 15, and a birdie on 16 brought him into a tie that was broken on the short 17th.
"I can feel the good and the bad. I'm there cheering for him," Tom Kelly said. "It was hard when they had that swing. I could see the frustration in him."
Chris Thompson also was hanging on as his son went up-and-down. "You're learning a life lesson," he said of the difficult finish. "Bryce regrouped after a couple of bad shots, then Riley regrouped after he thought he was out of it.
"I've coached too long (football assistant, his son was quarterback) and I know they have to work through it themselves."
Bryce Kelly had the key shot on No. 18 when he reached the heavily-sloped green (low on the front) from a tough sidehill lie in the 18th right rough. "I knew I had to hit a good wedge on 18," he said. With the ball below his feet, he added, "I did not want to go right. I wanted to get it left and stay below the pin. I hit a pretty darn good shot."
Riley Thompson's drive on 18 was about 25 yards ahead of Kelly’s and just inside the 100-yard marker. However, Thompson’s approach was well short as he decelerated his wedge and fell about 10 yards shy of the green. He chipped on and nearly jarred the approach for the tying birdie.
"I've never really been in a situation at the close," he said of feeling the pressure down the stretch. "I made a mental mistake (while putting for par) on 17."
The eagle provided a major boost after a tough front.
"It (eagle) gave me confidence, but then I made some mistakes on the next two holes," he said. "I'm happy the way I played the back nine. I dug a deep hole after 10 but I showed some ability to grind through and get back at it."
Kelly, who is thinking about trying to be a walk-on for the Northern Michigan University golf team in the fall, was excited with his title. "This is a little special, especially doing it on my home course really topped it off."
St. Ignace claimed the team title with a 339, nine strokes fewer than Norway. Coach Claudette Brown watched her daughter Margo take medalist honors last year as a senior, then saw her boys team finish first a year later.
"I'm so overwhelmed. They are all pretty consistent," she said. "The boys were hoping to win. The kids can focus and do what needs to be done. I told them to focus on where they are."
She said the Saints made a big statement last month by winning a tournament in Charlevoix, beating perennial power Traverse City West in the process. She used three juniors and two freshmen for the Final on Thursday.
Junior Carter Tallaire, playing at No. 1, said "we thought we had a pretty good chance at it." He added that the Charlevoix tourney "gave us a lot of motivation. That really set the tone. We realized we could play good."
PHOTOS: (Top) Kyle Johnson of Iron Mountain blasts out of a tough lie in a bunker shy of the 16th green at Oak Crest Golf Club on Thursday during the Upper Peninsula Division 2 Final. (Middle) Bryce Kelly of Norway watches his birdie putt attempt roll just past the 18th hole. His par enabled him to win medalist honors with a 78. (Below) St. Ignace won the team championship; the team includes, from left, Andy Metz, Carter Tallaire, Kody Rickley, Hunter DeKeyser, Drew Marshall and coach Claudette Brown. (Photos by Denny Grall.)
Top PGA Pro Finish Latest Greatest Highlight as Cook Continues Climb
By
Dean Holzwarth
Special for MHSAA.com
July 19, 2021
GRAND RAPIDS – Ben Cook grew up rooting for PGA Tour star Phil Mickelson.
This past May 23, the former Grand Rapids South Christian High School standout received the thrill of a lifetime when he posed for pictures beside his childhood idol following the PGA Championship.
Cook, 27, was the low PGA Professional, while Mickelson became the oldest golfer to win a major after a two-stroke win at the Kiawah Island Golf Resort in South Carolina.
“I’ve always been a big Phil fan, my whole life growing up,” the 27-year-old Caledonia resident said. “And then it just happened to be him that won and I got to stand next to him, which was very special.
“I was like, I’m totally part of history right now and this is crazy. The oldest guy to ever win a major, and it being Phil. It was really cool.”
Cook earned the Crystal Ball as the low PGA Professional after finishing the tournament in a tie for 44th at +4.
He made the cut for the first time in his third appearance at the PGA Championship.
“I definitely can tell that playing on the weekend is a lot different than watching on the weekend from years past,” Cook said. “Once I made the cut, it felt like a huge weight lifted, and at that point I was like I have to go after every pin and try to make as many birdies as I can.”
Cook played with Webb Simpson in both weekend rounds and shot a 3-under 69 on Saturday.
“Overall, I played really good,” Cook said. “I was under par on the weekend, so I was happy about that.”
Cook turned some heads with his performance and received unwavering support from family, friends and the West Michigan community.
“It was quite the experience,” Cook said. “The support I got, and all the random text messages and people who came to the event. Just so many people wishing me good luck and prayers. It was overwhelming.
“I would get done with a round and have 100 text messages and almost 200 messages on Instagram. All these people saying, ‘good job’ and ‘we’re thinking about you,’ it was quite the feeling and very cool for sure.”
Cook was one of the state’s top high school golfers under late coach Rod VanDyke, who died in 2014. As a junior, he helped the Sailors to a runner-up finish at the 2011 MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 3 Final with a 10th-place individual performance.
South Christian finished among the top 10 again Cook’s senior year, this time in Division 2, as he placed sixth individually.
“I had a very influential and memorable golf coach in Rod VanDyke,” Cook said. “He made everything super light and was always hilarious.”
Cook played collegiately at Ferris State University and led the Bulldogs to the Division II National Quarterfinals his senior year. He was a two-time Player of the Year in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and twice earned All-America recognition.
“I just wanted to make the lineup as a freshman and travel, and I was really fortunate to play really well in qualifying,” Cook said. “That allowed me to play in every match that I was eligible to play in, and I never missed an event through my five years there.
“It was amazing to travel around the country and play in golf tournaments. The friends that I made playing golf at Ferris I still hang out with today. They are like my closest buddies.”
Cook graduated with a professional golf management degree, which granted him the opportunity to play in PGA sectional tournaments.
He played in his first PGA Championship in 2019 at Bethpage Black and missed the cut by three shots.
“After my senior year I knew I was going to try and play professionally,” Cook said. “I got a job that allowed me to work on my game and play as much as I can while still working to play the bills.”
Cook has four professional victories on his resume, including the 2020 Michigan PGA Championship.
He is currently the director of instruction at Yankee Springs Golf Course in Wayland.
“Teaching and coaching is a lot of fun,” Cook said. “Just being able to help people get better and seeing how excited they get when they finally start to get it and they hit it good. That’s what makes it fun for me, and I get the whole spectrum.
“I teach kids who are 5 to parents who are over 70. From the college player to the beginner. I get a variety, and that makes it fun and keeps you on your toes.”
Cook has status on the Latin America tour, and is currently 20th on that points list. He travels to Mexico next week, and will lock up a Korn Ferry Tour card with a win or runner-up finish. The Korn Ferry Tour is the developmental tour that feeds into the PGA Tour.
He intends to head to PGA Qualifying School in the fall if he doesn’t get a card.
2020-21 Made in Michigan
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PHOTOS: (Top) Grand Rapids’ Ben Cook reads a putt during the 2020 Michigan PGA Professional Championship, which he won. (Middle) Cook watches one of his drives at Katke Golf Course during the 2012 LP Division 2 Final. (Top photo by Greg Johnson/Michigan PGA. Middle photo by High School Sports Scene.)