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.)
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.)