‘A good opportunity:’ History-making Miller shoots 91 in opening round at state

BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS

Sports Editor, RTC

Tippecanoe Valley sophomore Savana Miller addresses her tee shot on the par-3 fourth hole at the IHSAA state finals at Prairie View Golf Club in Carmel Saturday. Miller shot a 91 and is tied for 68th in the field of 108 players. She will tee off at 8:40 a.m. from the back nine for her second round today. Miller is the first player in Valley history to make state in girls golf.

CARMEL — Savana Miller, Tippecanoe Valley’s history-making state qualifier, shot an opening-round 91 at the IHSAA girls golf state finals at Prairie View Golf Club Friday.

She is in a tie for 68th place in the field of 108 golfers.

Miller became too familiar with Prairie View’s bunkers, and her round had a frustrating finish: It took her three shots to get out of a greenside bunker on No. 9, and she took a triple bogey.

She also took four double bogeys, including back-to-back double bogeys to start her round on Nos. 10 and 11.

“Definitely frustrating for sure, but it was fun,” Miller said of her round. “A good opportunity.”

Valley coach Leslie Brouyette said Miller should not judge herself so harshly.

“It’s not what she wanted,” Brouyette said. “But this is hard. She started off nervous, right? And I think she was 5-over after the first three holes, but then I think she finally found her rhythm, and she did fine. I think at the end, she just let the emotion and the nerves, and I think a little bit of mental exhaustion there at the end. … I was thinking if she could shoot 85, keep it under 90, that’s a win for her first time down here, the nerves and everything. 

“And then tomorrow, let’s see some improvement from that. She’s OK. She needs to bounce back tomorrow.”

Miller was asked what her favorite shot of her round was and cited a par putt she made on No. 15.

“I had probably a 15-foot putt, and my drives were pretty good,” Miller said.

Miller said length off the tee is not her forte. Paired with players from Munster, Center Grove and Evansville Memorial, she was usually away for her second shot on all par-4s and par-5s.

“Pretty much every par-4,” Miller answered when asked how often she used her driver. “I’m not really known for long hitting, so I kind of have to.”

Given that lack of length off the tee, she makes up for it with precise iron play. It allowed her to win sectional medalist with a 74 at Stonehenge Golf Club in Winona Lake Sept. 18. Eight days later, she shot a 76 at the regional at Noble Hawk Golf Links in Kendallville to become the first player in Valley school history to qualify for state.

“Today was not really a good day for my irons,” Miller said. “I’m not really sure. I think I was definitely nervous and then when I start that, I develop bad habits throughout the round.”

Again, Brouyette said Miller was being too hard on herself.

“Right now in her head, she played worse than she actually hit,” Brouyette said.

Miller described the last week of her life as “exciting.”

“Again, this is a great opportunity,” Miller said. “Driving around on the bus and seeing all the schools is really fun.”

Miller was asked about balancing schoolwork while preparing for state.

“A little bit hard,” Miller said. “I’m not too far behind, but I have to skip a day for a practice round and then skip another day for the actual round, but it’s not too bad.”

Miller’s fan support was considerable. Her parents, her grandmother and her aunts were among those in her gallery. Her sister Lydia Miller, who plays tennis at Wartburg College, an NCAA Division III school located in Waverly, Iowa, made the trip. Lydia Miller is also a former Valley golfer.

“I’m really thankful she came,” Savana said.

Leslie Brouyette walked the course while volunteer coach Chad Brouyette, who is Leslie’s husband, walked alongside Savana offering coaching between shots.

Cade Brouyette, who is Leslie and Chad’s son and who played collegiately at Indiana Wesleyan after graduating from Valley, has also helped with coaching.

“Seriously, I would not be here without them,” Savana said. “They help me (with) all my practice rounds and everything. They help so much, and during practices, they take me to everything. They’re awesome.”

Savana said the Brouyettes often tell her to “loosen up.” She said they tell her that because she said she tends to get in her head sometimes.

“Probably 95 percent,” Savana said when asked how mental golf is. “Because I think the days that you’re upset, you’re definitely going to play worse, and if you’re on a high, then you’re going to play awesome.”

Savana said she started golfing as a sixth-grader on a suggestion from Lydia. Savana plays basketball during the winter and tennis during the spring, but she did not play a fall sport.

“I somehow got good at it,” Savana said.

She was asked if she loved golf right away.

“I did,” Savana said. “My team was really fun in middle school, and I just stuck with it.”

Savana said she loves “the grind” and called golf “such a fun game.”

She will begin her second round at 8:40 a.m. today and will again start on the back nine. But first, she needed to practice.

“Work on my irons,” Savana said. “I need to go do that right now. Just have a more consistent round that I’m OK to end the season on.”