MONROE - Despite scrambling their way to sectionals, Monroe's golfers walked off No. 18 at Monroe Country Club looking like someone stole their favorite iron.
But the Cheesemakers were hardly the only team that flashed as many smiles as birdies at Tuesday's WIAA Division 2 regional. Nonetheless, Monroe held course with 343 combined strokes, good for the fourth and final team qualifying spot for next Wednesday's sectional meet in Mayville.
"This isn't the big one to win, that's next week," Monroe coach Jeriamy Jackson said. "If we can take anything out of today, it's that it's through and we're done; we get to play next week."
Junior Brandon Wilson led the Cheesemakers by carding 80 shots, while senior ace Gary Petit scored an 81. Petit had been watching the Country Club's grounds crew all week.
"They've been mowing the greens all week, double-cutting 'em, triple-cutting 'em," Petit said.
Not only were the greens downright slick, the pin placements also made for some regular adventures in putting. The sixth-hole par 3 saw several golfers strike multiple putts that overran the hole before coming to a halt, rocking backward and rolling back to the original putting spot.
That happened to Petit, who birdied No. 1 before picking up bogeys on the next three holes. As other golfers squirmed and were even reduced to tears by putts returning to their stance, Petit buried his second try.
"Adversity is quite high when you're playing bad and you see things like that, but you just gotta keep grinding it out," Petit said.
"If they were slow greens and weren't undulating like they are, then everyone would eat this course up and it wouldn't be the Monroe Country Club," Jackson said. "It wouldn't have the mystique."
Wilson also avoided disaster with a bogey on No. 6. He picked up two birdies, none more relieving than on the final hole, as he saw only frustration from his nearby teammates. His classmate, Mitch McArdle, had a day to forget with a 92 and put on an exhibition in mini-meltdowns, even lobbing a golf ball into the drink after taking a quadruple-bogey on No. 17.
"It's hard when you see someone else struggling, but you don't know how everyone else is doing so you have to focus on the hole you're playing and not give away strokes," Wilson said.
Wilson's drives were downright gaudy as he consistently was taking the last of the shot shots in his foursome. However, more often than not, those shots were coming from the second cut or worse.
"I was spraying my driver everywhere. I didn't really know where anything was going, so it was a lot of scrambling, getting up and down," Wilson said.
"My distance is definitely out there, but it's hard when you don't know where it's going."
Monroe junior Aaron Krattiger finished with 90 shots and senior Alex Holmes pitched in with a 94, as Monroe escaped fifth-place Brodhead by 12 shots. The Cardinals' ace, Jaimie Pierson, carded an 82 to lead the three individual qualifiers.
The senior picked up a tremendous break on the final hole when he tried to fly the fairway bunker on the right side of the par-5's fairway, only to catch the very back edge. But, instead of having to hit a high iron to get over the lip of the bunker, Pierson took a drop and didn't skip a beat, thanks to the hazard being under work.
"I thought I could clear it, but it turned out good anyway ... really good, actually," Pierson said.
He finished out with an 82 and played the waiting game for nearly an hour.
"I choked last year on my home course," Pierson said as the final foursomes finished up. "I'm nervous, but I did my best and I can't really control anything anymore."
Edgerton senior Mike Hesselman got even better news as he was the meet's medalist.
"It was all about putting," Hesselman said. "The greens were quick, but they rolled really nice."
As the afternoon wore on and the sun made the grass stand up, the pace slowed. But one thing remained constant.
"You get rewarded if you hit good putts," Pierson said.
The Crimson Tide rolled through the meet as team champs with 320 combined strokes. Madison Edgewood's 324 was good for second and McFarland also made the cut with 332.
But the Cheesemakers were hardly the only team that flashed as many smiles as birdies at Tuesday's WIAA Division 2 regional. Nonetheless, Monroe held course with 343 combined strokes, good for the fourth and final team qualifying spot for next Wednesday's sectional meet in Mayville.
"This isn't the big one to win, that's next week," Monroe coach Jeriamy Jackson said. "If we can take anything out of today, it's that it's through and we're done; we get to play next week."
Junior Brandon Wilson led the Cheesemakers by carding 80 shots, while senior ace Gary Petit scored an 81. Petit had been watching the Country Club's grounds crew all week.
"They've been mowing the greens all week, double-cutting 'em, triple-cutting 'em," Petit said.
Not only were the greens downright slick, the pin placements also made for some regular adventures in putting. The sixth-hole par 3 saw several golfers strike multiple putts that overran the hole before coming to a halt, rocking backward and rolling back to the original putting spot.
That happened to Petit, who birdied No. 1 before picking up bogeys on the next three holes. As other golfers squirmed and were even reduced to tears by putts returning to their stance, Petit buried his second try.
"Adversity is quite high when you're playing bad and you see things like that, but you just gotta keep grinding it out," Petit said.
"If they were slow greens and weren't undulating like they are, then everyone would eat this course up and it wouldn't be the Monroe Country Club," Jackson said. "It wouldn't have the mystique."
Wilson also avoided disaster with a bogey on No. 6. He picked up two birdies, none more relieving than on the final hole, as he saw only frustration from his nearby teammates. His classmate, Mitch McArdle, had a day to forget with a 92 and put on an exhibition in mini-meltdowns, even lobbing a golf ball into the drink after taking a quadruple-bogey on No. 17.
"It's hard when you see someone else struggling, but you don't know how everyone else is doing so you have to focus on the hole you're playing and not give away strokes," Wilson said.
Wilson's drives were downright gaudy as he consistently was taking the last of the shot shots in his foursome. However, more often than not, those shots were coming from the second cut or worse.
"I was spraying my driver everywhere. I didn't really know where anything was going, so it was a lot of scrambling, getting up and down," Wilson said.
"My distance is definitely out there, but it's hard when you don't know where it's going."
Monroe junior Aaron Krattiger finished with 90 shots and senior Alex Holmes pitched in with a 94, as Monroe escaped fifth-place Brodhead by 12 shots. The Cardinals' ace, Jaimie Pierson, carded an 82 to lead the three individual qualifiers.
The senior picked up a tremendous break on the final hole when he tried to fly the fairway bunker on the right side of the par-5's fairway, only to catch the very back edge. But, instead of having to hit a high iron to get over the lip of the bunker, Pierson took a drop and didn't skip a beat, thanks to the hazard being under work.
"I thought I could clear it, but it turned out good anyway ... really good, actually," Pierson said.
He finished out with an 82 and played the waiting game for nearly an hour.
"I choked last year on my home course," Pierson said as the final foursomes finished up. "I'm nervous, but I did my best and I can't really control anything anymore."
Edgerton senior Mike Hesselman got even better news as he was the meet's medalist.
"It was all about putting," Hesselman said. "The greens were quick, but they rolled really nice."
As the afternoon wore on and the sun made the grass stand up, the pace slowed. But one thing remained constant.
"You get rewarded if you hit good putts," Pierson said.
The Crimson Tide rolled through the meet as team champs with 320 combined strokes. Madison Edgewood's 324 was good for second and McFarland also made the cut with 332.
