Topper golfers win regional championship
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THE GLENWOOD CITY Golf team celebrated the regional championship it won last week while playing in the Division 3 competition at the Voyager Village Golf Course. From left to right are varsity team members Brett Peterson, Esdyn Swenby, Landon Obermueller (on shoulders holding the regional plaque), Ben Wittmer and Charles Lamb. —photo submitted
DANBURY — On Thursday, May 23, the Glenwood City golf team ventured to Voyager Village to compete for the WIAA Division 3 Webster Regional championship against nine other teams to determine who would go on to the sectional round.
The event had originally been rescheduled from Tuesday due to rain storms that day, so the team was already adjusting to a new dynamic. Going in as the favored seed, and having won an invitational at Voyager two weeks ago, the team was eager to perform well. However, they were soon met with a late afternoon tee time, over eager fans and early setbacks. All of this did not deter them; the team was able to finish first on the day and claim their first regional championship in the last decade.
Speaking to Coach Popko after, he pointed out some of the setbacks. “The team really wanted to do well and so we set a goal of coming home with the plaque. I do think the hot weather and getting there a bit too early set us back some. The boys then teed off with a bit too much on their minds and we struggled on the back nine.”
As it turned out, all the teams started on the back nine at Voyager as the rescheduled event led to some hiccups. The number of casual golfers on the course led to some interruptions and the boys took a bit to get used to newer situations. This led the team to post a 188 on the back nine, close to their highest average for the season. Popko spoke to this, “It is never fun to have to adjust and I think the added pressure caused a bit of a setback.”
Still, at the turn the Hilltoppers were thoroughly in the race for first, being only 2 to 3 strokes back behind local rival Clear Lake.
GLENWOOD CITY senior Ben Wittmer prepared to hit a tee shot during the WIAA Division 3 regional golf meet at Voyager Village Golf Course May 23. —photo submitted
On the front nine, the team started to find their groove and scores returned to regular average for Glenwood City. Specifically standing out for the team was sophomore Landon Obermueller who carded a 45 on the back (with a ten) and went on to shoot a 40 on the front for an 85. Popko remarked on such a good finish, “We have been working all year with Landon on staying mentally strong through setbacks and I could not be prouder of the result he posted today.” Asking Obermueller about the day, he pointed out that it was his best competitive round of his career so far.
As the afternoon turned into dusk, the boys had to hurry to finish the round. The local officials were worried that the event might not finish so the final five groups had to increase their pace of play. This led to a significant turn of events, as Clear Lake had a few much improved golfers over the season struggle in the home stretch. In turn, the improved back nine performance saw Glenwood City post a 175, below their season average.
Individually, Glenwood City’s Landon Obermueller tied for second with his 85. Junior Esdyn Swenby posted a 47/44 for a 91 to finish tenth. Junior Charlie Lamb carded a 49/44 for a 93. Senior Ben Wittmer scored two 47’s to earn a 94. Senior Brett Peterson also played and ended up with a 115.
The Hilltoppers are looking forward to competing in the upcoming sectional meet. As Popko pointed out, “We will do as well as we can. This round sure did prove to us that we do not like to do things the simple way. Still, I am very proud of the team and I think the boys showed excellent sportsmanship and resiliency considering the conditions.”
As the sun set, the Glenwood City Hilltoppers finished their round with a score of 363 to win the regional championship. Popko described the results as, “acceptable for the day, but the team isn’t satisfied” and the whole team admitted they could do better than what they posted.
Clear Lake finished second with a 370. Luck/Frederic posted a 372. Birchwood posted a 384. These four teams move on to the sectional meet which took place at the Luck golf course on Tuesday, May 28th.