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.)
'I Wouldn't Have Done it Any Other Way'
June 27, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Gray Raymond would like to believe every high school golfer would’ve made the same call as he did on the final hole of his Regional this spring. And he hopes those who wouldn’t might hear about his story and reconsider next time they have the opportunity.
Three weeks after calling out an otherwise-unseen stroke on himself – which eventually may have kept him from an opportunity to advance to the MHSAA Finals – the Maple City Glen Lake now-junior can’t imagine making any other decision.
His story received some publicity close to home, but in case you hadn’t heard: Raymond finished his sophomore season by shooting a team-best 85 to lead Glen Lake to a fifth-place Division 4 Regional finish May 29 at Treetops’ Tradition in Gaylord. On the final hole, after his playing partners had finished up, Raymond approached his ball for a 5-inch tap in – and accidentally nudged the ball, by rule a stroke.
No one else saw it. No one else would’ve ever found out. But Raymond would’ve known – and he immediately called out the unintended hit so it could be recorded on his card.
Strokes are lost and gained throughout a golf round, so it shouldn’t be said that one made the difference. But when results for the day were posted, Raymond found out he potentially missed qualifying for the Finals by one shot. Taking a shot off his score would've put him in a tie for the third and final individual qualifier spot and set up a playoff with Mackinaw City's Kal O'Brien. Instead, O'Brien claimed that last Finals berth unopposed.
“I wouldn’t have done it any other way. That’s not the way I was taught, and definitely not the way I was raised,” Raymond said Wednesday as he loaded up a bucket of balls at the driving range. “I’d rather lose than be a cheater.
“At the time, I was just upset that I lost, pretty much. I didn’t think anyone really would care how it happened. I didn’t think anything of it until I got to school on Monday and my teachers were congratulating me and stuff like that.”
Raymond’s sportsmanship made a longer-lasting impression than probably most of the rounds played across the Lower Peninsula at Finals the following weekend. The story was picked up by the local Leelanau Enterprise for a story June 5, and last week Raymond was honored by Glen Lake’s board of education with the “Anchor Up!” Award,” which he said is given to adults for their contributions to the school district. He thinks he was the first student to receive it.
Raymond also was the subject of a now well-traveled email to members of the Northwest Conference from Suttons Bay’s four-time Division 4 champion coach Todd Hursey, who wrote in part, “My heart goes out to him, but my heart is also warmed by his integrity. These moments should be celebrated as much as the golfing accomplishments.”
Raymond learned the game in large part from his father Ron, who played in high school and college and who “made it clear at a young age, no matter what happens out there, rules come first. I definitely learned from classroom to green to tee,” Gray Raymond said.
The golf community can become close-knit, especially among the top players at the high school age levels, and Raymond said he’s received texts from quite a few competitors from other schools telling him “that was a really bold move” and offering plenty of support – including reminding him of the big picture, and how missing these Finals will end up just a detail in what should be two more great years of high school golf.
And Wednesday included, Raymond already is getting ready. He’s definitely going to adjust his approach next time. At this Regional, he was playing with that day’s eventual winner Will Newbold, and knowing he was a number of strokes back of the Frankfort ace figured he didn’t have a chance to qualify and let that sink his mental game – when in reality he was right in the running. Raymond would’ve played at least one hole a little differently to give himself a better shot.
And absolutely, it will be that much more rewarding when Raymond, perhaps inevitably, does qualify for the Finals over the next two seasons.
“I wouldn’t have been able to call myself a golfer, honestly, if I’d walked out to that first tee box at states, Raymond said. “People are saying not many high school kids would do that, to immediately just call (a stroke) on yourself. But it never crossed my mind not to.
“I would like to say they would (call it), but honestly I don’t know. I would hope so. I hope everyone has the mindset of well, I messed up. There’s always a consequence of something, positive or negative, and if I walked away there’s no consequence – so what’s the lesson learned there?”
PHOTOS courtesy of Maple City Glen Lake’s athletic department.