Golf is a mental sport, and that’s what makes it hard. Even when you compete against other people, your own thoughts always stand as your biggest competitor.
Talawanda senior Ty Huber said this challenge motivates him and keeps him returning to the game.
“It makes you want to work even harder to get those good days consistently,” Huber said.
As Huber sets up a putt during practice, he concentrates his stare between the ball and the hole. After he carefully taps the ball with his putter, coach Don Gloeckner approaches Huber with some advice on his strokes going forward.
Huber and the two other seniors on the Talawanda golf team, Aidan Bruder and Connor Shulte, say they know they cannot reminisce over previous putts. They have to keep thinking forward, regardless of the past.
“The most important shot is the next one,” said Shulte, whose next competitive stroke will be at the state sectional tournament.
The team hasn’t advanced out of its section in 26 years, but Gloeckner said he feels confident that this could be the year. Talawanda beat Harrison — the only other golf team in the school’s conference — twice this year, after having failed to beat their rival in the last two years. In addition to this win, Talawanda boasts a 12-0 dual tournament record.
“I’m pretty excited,” Bruder said about entering the tournament. “I played here for four years. It all kind of leads up to senior year, so it’s nice to get here finally and all be playing well. I’m pretty happy with how I’ve played so far.”
The golfers say they have to focus on their next shot, not just in golf, but also in life. Shulte will play at Tiffin University next year, Huber has committed to the team at Mt. St. Joseph’s University, and Bruder, this year’s SWOC player of the year, plans to begin the recruiting process after this season ends.
Bruder, especially, has implemented this mantra to set goals for himself in order to grow.
“Freshman year, I sucked,” Bruder said with a laugh. “Sophomore year I kind of got better and then that’s kind of where I think I found I wanted to play in college and kept improving from there.”
The players said they are proud of their improvement and look forward to developing their skills even more as they advance to the collegiate level.
The three seniors, who have been all-league three years in a row practice at the Hueston Woods putting green. Set up around each hole are white markers placed in the shallow grass. The boys each focus on their strokes intently as the sound of clubs smacking against golf balls in the driving range echoes in the distance.
Gloeckner says he has laid out different goals for the team this year. As well as focusing on putting and chipping to cut down on strokes, he has emphasized the mental approach.
“It’s about staying in the moment and not letting past shots affect future shots,” Gloeckner said. “You don’t get too frustrated. And so that has been a team process.”
Huber, who’s golfed since he was 4 years old, said that sometimes he does feel the stress on the green.
“It’s a game where you can be at a part that’s so high, but it can bring you all the way down. It’s just one of the honestly toughest games there is to play. And there’s just so much to it, so much to think about,” Huber said.
Nevertheless, Bruder said a secret to the team’s success has also been a lesson as old as time: enjoying the moment and having fun.
