Junior Golf: Mokena’s McCabe captures Challenge crown
By Tim O’Brien For Sun-Times Media June 19, 2012 11:02PM
Will McCabe, of Mokena, hits his tee shot on the 14th hole in the boys 13 to 15 division in the SouthtownStar Challenge Junior Golf Championship at Glenwoodie Golf Course in Glenwood, Illinois, Tuesday, June 19, 2012. | Joseph P. Meier~Sun-Times Media
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Updated: July 21, 2012 6:17AM
Finishing his round at Tuesday’s SouthtownStar Challenge Junior Golf Championship, Mokena’s Will McCabe felt comfortable, if not overly confident, with his score.
The Providence sophomore-to-be carded a 78, then had to sit and wait for four groups behind him to finish.
“I knew there were some really strong players behind me,” McCabe said. “I didn’t know if my score would be good enough to hold up, and I knew someone had shot a 38 (on the front nine), so I was nervous.”
McCabe’s 6-over-par 78 proved to be just enough to pull out a win and take the Boys 13 to 15 Division title, claiming the Marshall Dann trophy at Glenwoodie Golf Course. Oak Forest’s David Karwoski finished one stroke behind with a 79.
Of the top-four finishers in the division, McCabe was the only golfer to have a birdie, ending with two overall. He also had eight pars. McCabe drilled a long putt on the par-5 13th hole for his second birdie.
“That putt got me back in it,” McCabe said. “It was a pretty exciting win, and it’s a big tournament that I’ve always wanted to win.”
Karwoski, a junior-to-be at Oak Forest, ended his round with 11 pars. He bogeyed the 18th hole, missing a short putt that would have forced a sudden death playoff.
“I was comfortable with my score, but I wasn’t sure it’d be a winning score,” Karwoski said. “I played the last three holes pretty good. It was windy out there, so that made it hard, but I avoided any bad shots so I was happy with my round.”
Chicago’s Jason Mathus and Mokena’s Anthony Bolden tied for third place with rounds of 82. A Lindblom student entering his junior year, Mathus was trying to improve as much as possible on his practice round over the weekend.
At the hilly, water-filled 16th hole, Mathus shot a nine in his practice round. Tuesday, he managed a bogey on the par-4 hole.
“I just wanted to get through 16,” Mathus said with a laugh. “I hit it into the water twice (Saturday), so if I get through that, everything would be smooth sailing. It was a bogey, but I’ll take four strokes under what I did before.”
A model of consistency early, Bolden started his round with six pars in a row and finished with 11 overall. He had seven pars through the first nine holes.
“I felt comfortable for the most part,” Bolden said. “My putting was working, but my driver wasn’t helping me out.”
Bolden will be a freshman at Lincoln-Way Central in the fall. His older brother, Bryant, won the Boys 16 to 18 Division crown Tuesday.
