Scorecards from recent Johnson County tournaments show the progress the Whiteland boys golf program is making.
Since 2015, the Warriors have shot, in order, team scores of 438 at Timbergate in Edinburgh, 374 at Hickory Stick and 353 and 339 the past two springs at The Legends in Franklin.
Fourth-year coach Dan Gibson feels the Warriors’ best days are still ahead.
“The biggest problem, I feel, was we didn’t really have a golf program,” said Gibson, a 1970 Whiteland graduate who, interestingly, didn’t start playing golf until age 30. “We had kids who could play golf, but we didn’t have any (younger) kids involved.
[sc:text-divider text-divider-title=”Story continues below gallery” ]Click here to purchase photos from this gallery
“The junior high teams were … one year we would have a good kid and the next year we wouldn’t have any. After the season was over, it seemed everyone threw their clubs in the corner in June and never picked them up again until fall and spring.”
The program now includes players participating in summer golf, fall golf, winter workouts and, in some cases, individual lessons.
“The guys have worked really hard,” Gibson said. “I’m proud of all of them.”
Not only are Warriors players posting lower scores, the number of them doing so continues to rise.
A strong junior class is led by No. 1 player Zach Ricketts, whose nine-hole norm of 39.3 barely eclipses the 39.8 of freshman William Davis. Juniors Jacob Johnson (40.2) and Walt Brady (40.8) are starters, as is the lone senior, Max Pressler (42.5).
Whiteland’s No. 6 player, junior Collin Godar (44.6), is also capable of breaking into the lineup before the end of the season.
Another potential showcase for Whiteland is next week’s Mid-State Conference tournament at Deer Creek Golf Club in Clayton. Host Plainfield and Franklin are viewed as favorites, though Gibson said his team’s goal is first place or, at worst, runner-up.
Johnson, a starter since his freshman season, said top three would be acceptable. Early in his career, that wouldn’t have been a realistic objective.
"When our senior (Pressler) was a freshman, it was pretty bad," Johnson said. "When our class came in, we started winning some matches. The expectations have gone up as we’ve gotten better. It’s made me want to win more matches."
Whiteland’s postseason trajectory resembles its county tournament progress the past four years. The Warriors placed 11th at the 2015 sectional with a score of 420, then went 374 (ninth), 373 (eighth) and last season’s 363 (sixth).
“Going into this season, I knew we were going to be pretty good,” Brady said. “I’ve had no other expectations.”
The coach said Brady’s improvement embodies what Whiteland golf is beginning to accomplish. As a freshman, Brady was the Warriors’ 11th or 12th best player (out of 12). But through frequent practice rounds and attention to improving all aspects of his game, he moved into the starting lineup at the end of his sophomore season.
Now, Brady is the team’s No. 4 player.
Gibson is stepping down as coach after this season to watch the golf progress of one of his grandsons, who will be an eighth-grader at Franklin. Assistant coach Jim Morse will succeed Gibson in what the latter expects to be a seamless transition.
“The two big competitors, Center Grove and Franklin, we’re just starting to catch up to the tail end of where they’ve been,” Gibson said. “It’s going to be some time, but we’re making headway. We’re going to get there one day.”
