TWIN LAKE – Everyone figured that Mona Shores would win another Greater Muskegon Athletic Association boys golf tournament championship on Wednesday.
The Sailors are one of the best teams in the state, let alone the area, and have now won the local tournament for three years in row.
The only mystery was which Sailor would shoot the best on city day and win the individual title at the tournament.
Mona Shores is a great team with a lot of balance, and the best guy at one event may not be the best at the next.
[1]On Wednesday it was Jeff Lenartowicz’ turn to be the top guy, but just barely.
It was looking like he was headed for a tie for first place with his teammate Nicholas Taylor, and an overtime round might be needed to determine the championship.
But Lenartowicz sank an impressive 30-foot putt on the 17th hole, giving him a one-stroke edge over Taylor and the individual title at the GMAA tournament at Stonegate Golf Course in Twin Lake.
Lenartowicz shot a 75 on the day, followed by Taylor with a 76. The rest of the top 10 were Tyler Tallefson of Reeths-Puffer and Chase Knowlton of Mona Shores (76), Alex Eckerman of Mona Shores (77), Owen DeLong of Mona Shores (81), Logan Wolters of North Muskegon (82), Chase Baustert of Reeths-Puffer (84), and Hunter DeLora of Oakridge and Danny Flanagan of Montague (87).
[2]“I knew the position I was in, so I just figured we would have a playoff,” said Lenartowicz, 18, who finished second in the city tournament last year. “But then I put it on the green, and I just walked up and thought, all right, let’s have a good stroke, and it just went in. I was pretty excited.”
Mona Shores coach Scott Volkmann said he had already texted Taylor about being ready for a playoff, but was happy for Lenartowicz when he made the big putt.
‘“He’s playing great right now,” Volkmann said about Lenartowicz “He had kind of a lull in his round today, and I texted Nico telling him to be ready for a playoff, then Jeff hits the 30-footer to win. It was a great way for him to finish.”
With all five Mona Shores golfers finishing in the top 10, another team championship was guaranteed, and it came easily for the Sailors.
[3]They finished with a team score of 302, followed by Reeths-Puffer (353), Montague (363), Whitehall (365), North Muskegon (368), Western Michigan Christian (384), Fruitport (386), Muskegon Catholic (399), Oakridge (400) and Holton (407).
“There are six guys on our team, five here today, who at any given time can shoot a 75 or better,” Volkmann said. “It just depends on who’s playing well.”
While it’s always nice to be the top team in the area, the Sailors have bigger fish to fry over the next month or so.
They had a great squad last year, but failed to qualify for the Division 1 state finals as a team, missing the cut in regionals by one stroke.
[4]This year the Sailors will host regionals at Stonegate, and are determined to qualify this time so they can get their chance to test their skills against the other top teams in the state.
“This team has a huge chip on its shoulder,” said Volkmann, whose squad is ranked second in the state in Division 1. “We have a lot of unfinished business. But I think the guy’s mindset is even better than their skillset, and their skillset is good.”
Volkmann said he expected his team to be about 15 shots better on Wednesday, and the players obviously agreed and decided to do something about it right away.
“They are going to go to the course tonight and work on their putting and try to get a little bit better,” Volkmann said.
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