‘These conditions were tough:’ Heishman, Musselman make all-TRC team at windy Round Barn as Zebras finish 3rd

BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS

Sports Editor, RTC

Rochester golfers Ashton Musselman, left, and Isaac Heishman made the all-Three Rivers Conference team after finishing in the top 10 among individuals at the conference tournament at Round Barn Golf Club at Mill Creek Saturday. Heishman shot an 82 and tied for fourth. Musselman shot an 83 and tied for sixth. As a team, Rochester shot a 348 and finished third in the 10-team field. Conference newcomer Northwestern won with a 335.

Any golfer committed to shooting a low score knows that he or she might have to adjust for the wind.

What happened at the Three Rivers Conference boys golf tournament at Round Barn Golf Club at Mill Creek Saturday might have bordered on the ridiculous.

Playing amidst fierce spring winds and temperatures in the upper-60s, Rochester shot a 348 to finish third out of 10 teams.

Isaac Heishman shot an 82, and Ashton Musselman shot an 83 to earn all-TRC honors for the Zebras. Davis Renie shot an 86, Brady Morgan had a 97, and Brevin Nicholson had a 101.

Northwestern won with a 335, and Northfield was second with a 346. Northwestern’s Hudson Whaley was the medalist with a 75.

The course was so windy that players had to adjust by two or even three club lengths. 

“I knew coming into today, and I told the boys beforehand it would take a lot to win, but I thought we had a chance,” Rochester coach Mason Heyde said. “And I stick by that. It’s just these conditions were tough, but everybody was playing in them. It was just we struggled at times, but I’m sure everyone else did too.”

Golfers had to be on alert for the impact of the wind on every shot.

“100 percent,” Heishman said when asked how many times he had to calculate the wind into his club selection. “Just about every single shot.”

While Heishman, a sophomore, made the all-conference team for the second straight year, Musselman, a junior, made the all-conference team for the first time. He calls golf “always a grind” and said he practiced on a golf simulator during the winter to prepare for the season.

“It feels pretty good,” Musselman said. “I wish I would have shot a little lower, but the wind was a big factor for me.”

Heishman was asked to cite an example of a hole that affected his club selection.

“On 18, I had 160 out, and I played it 200 yards, and it was perfectly pin high, and I just pushed it right,” Heishman said. “I hit a 4-iron.”

What club would you normally use?

“A 7-iron. … It was about a three-club difference. It’s crazy. It was a little hard today.”

Heishman even said the wind affected his putting.

“If you’re into wind, then you have to hit it a little bit harder, and then vice-versa if you’re downwind,” Heishman said. “I was doing really well putting. I was making just about everything. That’s what really saved me today was my putting.”

Heyde, a 2008 Rochester grad, was asked to put the wind into context.

“There are times it gets windy but gusty, but today was sustained winds that felt like it had to be every bit of 20 (miles per hour) all day with a lot of the time 30-ish-plus,” Heyde said. “I didn’t check the wind speed, but it was two clubs all day. And you know it’s something I’ve talked about as a coach is trying to learn how to play in it because a lot of the boys – and I know they were doing it today but it’s hard to adjust mid-round and see everyone – but if they’re dead into the wind, and they’re just trying to muscle a club and trying to hit it hard, that creates more spin and it makes the wind affect it more. Instead of going up a few more clubs and smoothing a swing and trying to take spin off the ball, that way the wind doesn’t affect it as much, but that’s a hard thing to overcome because it’s hard to practice.

“Overall, I think the boys played pretty well. I’m happy with it.”

The top 10 plus ties make the all-conference team. Every golfer who shot 85 or lower made the all-conference team.

Musselman was asked about the importance of home course advantage in golf.

“I think in this case with how windy it was, I don’t think there was a home course advantage today,” Musselman said. “I just don’t think we played the best, and that’s why Northwestern beat us by 13 strokes.”

at Round Barn Golf Club at Mill Creek Saturday (par 72)

Northwestern 335, Northfield 346, ROCHESTER 348, Manchester 357, Lewis Cass 360, Maconaquah 364, Southwood 366, Peru 377, Wabash 395, Whitko 422

ROCHESTER (348): Isaac Heishman 82, Ashton Musselman 83, Davis Renie 86, Brady Morgan 97, (Brevin Nicholson 101)

All-TRC (top 10 plus ties): 1. Hudson Whaley (NW) – 75 (medalist), 2. Tyson Baer (NF) – 77, 3. Logan Duncan (NW) – 81, T-4. ISAAC HEISHMAN (RHS) – 82, t-4. Easton Shaw (NF) – 82, T-6. ASHTON MUSSELMAN (RHS) – 83, t-6. Griffin Chambers (SW) – 83, 8. Camron Metcalf (MAC) – 84, t-9. Ross Andrews (SW) – 85, t-9. Connor Trump (MAN) – 85, t-9. Michael Myers (LC) – 85