Performance: Gaylord's Brendon Gouin
May 25, 2017
Brendon Gouin
Gaylord sophomore – Golf
Gouin strung together four straight individual first places over the last two weeks to lead his team on a similarly stunning streak of success. From May 11-18, Gouin finished first at four straight 18-hole events, going lowest with a 68 at the Gaylord Blue Devil Open on May 16 to earn the Michigan Army National Guard “Performance of the Week.” His team, meanwhile, had won nine straight events through Wednesday and surged to No. 3 in the Lower Peninsula Division 2 coaches poll – impressive especially since the team didn’t make it out of Regionals a year ago.
That first 18-hole event was the Ogemaw Heights Invitational at the Dream Golf Course, where he shot a 77 to finish as co-medalist. Next came Gaylord’s turn to host the Big North Conference at Treetops North’s Tradition course, where Gouin fired at even-par 70 to finish first. He then did something that almost defied explanation – he switched irons between events, didn’t tell his coach, and then shot a 68 to win the Blue Devil Open at Tradition. Gouin added a first-place 76 at the Big North event at River’s Edge in Alpena to cap the personal run.
Gouin has averaged 78.8 strokes this spring over 13 events, often through tough weather typical to the north this time of year. He also wrestles at 103 pounds during the winter for an annually ranked team in Division 2 – see below for how that’s paid off in his golf game – and played soccer in the fall. As noted above, Gaylord didn’t make the MHSAA Finals last season, finishing only ninth at its Regional while starting three freshmen and a sophomore. Those then-underclassmen are starters again, and Gaylord is the likely favorite at next Thursday’s Regional at Lincoln Hills in Ludington.
Coach Tom Johnson said: “The exciting thing about Brendon is he is just a sophomore. He has no fear on the course. He always seems to work his way out of trouble no matter the circumstances. One bad shot does not lead to another. And he always wants to be the medalist in every tournament we play, knowing that his success is the best way to help out his team’s goal of trying to win every tournament they play in. What I really like about him is that he is never satisfied and works extremely hard to be successful. … The beauty of this team is that Brendon is surrounded by some really good young players that push him to excel to his best. We have sophomore Kyle Putnam that averages 80.3, sophomore Joe Kowatch averages 84.0 and junior Nick Rowley averages 82.1. The best for this team, hopefully, is yet to come. Their potential is unlimited.”
Performance Point: “The day before I ended up shooting a 70, my grandpa (Jim Gilbert, a former tour pro) asked, ‘What’s the number today?’ And I said 68,” Gouin recalled of the Blue Devil Open round. “I went out and shot 68, and it was the lowest round (303) we’ve had as a group, as a team. Last year at our first tournament, we had three freshmen and (shot) our best team score. It was a 315, and we never beat that all year, so to go out this year and beat it more than once was just great for us. … Everything (for me) clicked for a while. I was striking the ball great, my putting was very good, and I had confidence on the course. I was playing aggressively, going right at the pin and trying to do that every time.”
Pressure player: “For some of us, there might be more pressure. I’m different from all the other players; I like pressure. I like the feeling of knowing I have to do good.”
Attack mode: “The way I look at it, if I’m in trouble I don’t look anywhere. My mental (outlook) is I’m not making a par, I’m making a birdie. I’m very aggressive; my grandpa said he’s never seen anyone play so aggressively. It’s very different, my style of playing. A lot of it came from wrestling. I’m not very fearful. When I used to do snocross racing, I’d do anything.”
Grappling with golf: “(Wrestling) got me physically prepared, and mentally. Coach (Jerry) LaJoie is such a great coach. He got me mentally prepared for golf; if you’re not there to win, you shouldn’t be there at all. He’s helped me out so much in every possible way. Even if he knows it or not, he still did.”
On the rise: “We’re really a young team still. Our top four are all below juniors; we have a junior as our oldest. We’re still growing, and we’re all clicking. We have a lot of talent, and we’re starting to get better. We have two or three in the 70s; next year we’ll have three or four in the 70s. We’re going to have a good shot at getting to the top of state … but nine (wins) in a row doesn’t mean anything going into Regionals.”
- Geoff Kimmerly, Second Half editor
Every week during the 2016-17 school year, Second Half and the Michigan Army National Guard will recognize a “Performance of the Week" from among the MHSAA's 750 member high schools.
The Michigan Army National Guard provides trained and ready forces in support of the National Military Strategy, and responds as needed to state, local, and regional emergencies to ensure peace, order, and public safety. The Guard adds value to our communities through continuous interaction. National Guard soldiers are part of the local community. Guardsmen typically train one weekend per month and two weeks in the summer. This training maintains readiness when needed, be it either to defend our nation's freedom or protect lives and property of Michigan citizens during a local natural disaster.
Previous 2016-17 honorees:
May 18: Hannah Ducolon, Bay City All Saints softball – Read
May 11: Mason Phillips, Salem track & field – Read
May 4: Lillian Albaugh, Farwell track & field – Read
April 27: Amber Gall, Shepherd track & field – Read
April 20: Sloane Teske, East Grand Rapids tennis – Read
March 30: Romeo Weems, New Haven basketball – Read
March 23: Jaycie Burger and Maddie Clark, Pittsford basketball – Read
March 16: Camden Murphy, Novi swimming & diving – Read
March 9: Ben Freeman, Walled Lake Central wrestling – Read
March 2: Joey Mangner, Chelsea swimming & diving – Read
Feb. 23: Isabelle Nguyen, Grosse Pointe North gymnastics – Read
Feb. 16: Dakota Hurbis, Saline swimming & diving – Read
Feb. 2: Foster Loyer, Clarkston basketball – Read
Jan. 26: Nick Jenkins, Detroit Catholic Central wrestling – Read
Jan. 19: Eileene Naniseni, Mancelona basketball – Read
Jan. 12: Rory Anderson, Calumet hockey – Read
Dec. 15: Demetri Martin, Big Rapids basketball – Read
Dec. 1: Rodney Hall, Detroit Cass Tech football – Read
Nov. 24: Ally Cummings, Novi volleyball – Read
Nov. 17: Chloe Idoni, Fenton volleyball – Read
Nov. 10: Adelyn Ackley, Hart cross country – Read
Nov. 3: Casey Kirkbride, Mattawan soccer – Read
Oct. 27: Colton Yesney, Negaunee cross country – Read
Oct. 20: Varun Shanker, Midland Dow tennis – Read
Oct. 13: Anne Forsyth, Ann Arbor Pioneer cross country – Read
Oct. 6: Shuaib Aljabaly, Coldwater cross country – Read
Sept. 29: Taylor Seaman, Brighton swimming & diving – Read
Sept. 22: Maggie Farrell, Battle Creek Lakeview cross country – Read
Sept. 15: Franki Strefling, Buchanan volleyball – Read
Sept. 8: Noah Jacobs, Corunna cross country – Read
PHOTO: (Top) Gaylord's Brendon Gouin watches one of his drives at the Blue Devil Open. (Middle) Gouin follows an iron shot. (Photos courtesy of Gaylord Herald Times.)
Late Surge Pushes NorthPointe to D3 Win
June 8, 2019
By Tom Kendra
Special for Second Half
BIG RAPIDS – Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian trailed Big Rapids by eight strokes Saturday, with time running out.
Sensing his team needed a boost, both physically and mentally, fourth-year NorthPointe coach Erik Fahlen handed out Snickers bars to all five of his players with four holes remaining.
Those Snickers must have really satisfied.
The Mustangs staged a furious rally, with four golfers making birdies during the closing stretch to pull off a three-stroke victory in the Lower Peninsula Division 3 Final over hard-luck Big Rapids, which was playing at home on Katke Golf Course in Big Rapids.
“We had an incredible final four holes,” said Fahlen, whose team repeated as a Finals champion after winning the Division 4 title last year. “We gave them those candy bars just as way of reminding them that it’s close and they need to finish strong.”
NorthPointe finished with a two-day total of 624, with Big Rapids second at 627. Grosse Ile was a distant third at 664, followed by Napoleon (672) and Grand Rapids West Catholic (676).
Erik Fahlen Jr., the coach’s senior son and reigning Division 4 medalist, placed second this time and led the way for his team with steady, back-to-back rounds of 73.
Junior Lance VanErmen bounced back from an 81 on Friday with a 77 in windy conditions Saturday. But the key score Saturday for NorthPointe came from freshman Luke Schrock, who followed up an 83 with a 79 to give the Mustangs three scores in the 70s and provide the winning margin.
“It feels really good to help the team win,” said Schrock, who stayed calm despite a mid-round triple bogey. “We knew it was going to be close. I just tried to focus on every shot and not mess up.”
Schrock’s clutch round capped off a memorable end of the season for the 15-year-old. His 83 as the fifth man actually delivered the Mustangs a Regional title May 29, after the top four players tied with West Catholic’s.
Also figuring in the scoring for NorthPointe at the Final were sophomore Sam Nelson (76-82-158) and senior Ben Ng (85-82-167).
Hanover-Horton junior Jack Brockie captured the individual medalist honor after firing an impressive 3-under-par 69 on Saturday. His two-day total of 2-under 142 (73-69) was good for a four-stroke victory over Fahlen and Cheboygan senior Zachary Gilder (72-74-146).
“My putting was much better today,” explained Brockie, who qualified for the Final as an individual. “The strength of my game is my driving, and when I struggle, it’s around the greens. But today I was good on the greens.”
It proved to be a tough result to stomach, once again, for Big Rapids, which placed second for the third straight year. The perennially strong Cardinals last won a Finals title in 2008, but since have finished second five times.
Last year, the Cardinals actually tied for first with Hanover-Horton, but lost on the fifth-man tiebreaker.
This year, it looked like they would take the next step after having four players shoot 80 or better on Friday and build a five-stroke lead over NorthPointe Christian. Plus, they had the advantage of playing on their home course, with their school located adjacent to Katke’s 12th fairway.
Big Rapids maintained its lead for most of Saturday, led by senior standout Pierce Morrissey (74-75-149), before NorthPointe’s late-round heroics.
“It just goes to show that you can’t ever give up during a round of golf,” said Fahlen Jr., who will play on the golf team next year at Taylor University. “It was really a total team win. I mean, to have a freshman like Luke Schrock shoot a 79 in these conditions, is huge. The wind really picked up later in the day, and it got pretty tough out there.
“I think that’s the best part about today – we came through under pressure.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Golfers watch from the tee during Saturday’s LP Division 3 second round. (Middle) A competitor fires an approach from the sand. (Click to see more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)