Toth Weathers Nationals
"Golf is not, and never has been, a fair game," -- 18-time Major champion Jack Nicklaus.
For Schoolcraft College golf trailblazer Tyler Toth, the first player to qualify for the NJCAA Division II national tournament in recent memory, it wasn't quite the swan song he envisioned during his four days of play from May 20-23 at Swan Lake's Black Course in Plymouth, Ind.
For Toth, he not only battled the nasty outdoor elements, but also found himself trying to recover from the flu, which kept him out of the two practices round sessions prior to the event.
"I was down for the count like for six days, so I couldn't get out of bed for a week," said Toth, who finished 114th in a field of 156. "Didn't touch a golf club, so that was definitely tough going into it . . . and then the weather there was terrible. The first day it was 40 and raining, so that made me feel even worse. And then I felt O.K. by the end of it."
Not to make excuses, but his first-round card featured an uncharacteristic an 89, a +17 for 18 holes.
"A lot of the pin locations were in pretty odd spots because the low parts of the green had a quarter inch of rain on it," Toth said. "They had to squeegee them off, so a lot of the pins weren't where they were supposed to be. And then some parts of the fairway were covered in water. It was wet out there for sure."
Schoolcraft College coach Rick Larson was there on site to witness the carnage.
"We went nine holes in the worst conditions that mother earth could possibly provide for us," he said. "I had to run to his room and grab him a full change of clothes. I had to change all my clothes and I was underneath the cart the whole time. No possibility to stay dry, no chance. So soaked to the bone."
The second round – truncated over the next two days because of the unfavorable elements -- provided no relief whatsoever.
"I had a pretty good attitude about it," Toth said. "I was just glad to be there, but I was definitely very cold and wet. The first day was the worst. The second day it was still bad. I was supposed to tee off at 1 p.m. I ended up teeing off at 4, so there was a three-hour delay. And then I got three holes in. And then there was another hour-and-a-half delay. I only got in nine holes the second day and then Day three I had to finish the other nine and then get right back out and play my 18."
Ironically, Toth's second-round 80, a +8, prove to be his best round of the four.
"I told him leading into the back nine on the first day, I said, 'Our greatest attribute as humans are our adaptability,'" Larson said. "You have to come out of this regardless how terrible it was."
"Life is not fair, so why should I make a course that is fair," -- famed golf course architect Pete Dye.
The front nine was treacherous at Swan Lake. The tee boxes were moved back 30 yards with the pins tucked in the back corner.
"The pro there did just a wonderful job of making the golf course hard and then incrementally harder each day," Larson said.
On day three, Toth managed a pair of birdies, but couldn't maintain any momentum from round two as he shot a +14 for an 86.
"We just kept it light," Toth said. "We just talked about the experience a lot and I was glad to be there, being thankful and appreciative of just how far we got this season. It was the end of the road either way whether I played my best or worst. It was the end . . . so I knew that, he knew that. We just kind of reflected on the past two years together and how much fun we've had and it was just a good end to it."
On the final day, a Friday, conditions changed for the better. He was in the first group to tee off. It was 50 degrees and sunny, a sight for sore eyes.
"So, the first three days were terrible," Toth said. "The fourth day it finally broke up a little bit. I felt more comfortable for sure."
"The only time my prayers are never answered is on the golf course," noted evangelist Billy Graham.
But even though day four was the best day to play golf, only three players in the entire field broke par as Toth shot +10 round of 82 highlighted by a pair of birdies.
"In golf you can do a million things with statistics . . . and you could say he was close to the bottom, but just to do it for our school, to do it as a non-scholarship athlete in a scholarship world . . . " Larson said. "I think it was just the road that he traveled was kind of amazing. Even with the things that he had to deal with."
During his two seasons with the Ocelots, Toth averaged 80.35 per 18 holes as a sophomore and 82.22 as a freshman. He was 14th in the April MCCAA tourney, which was also hosted at Swan Lake.
Toth earned his spot at nationals by finishing seventh overall and earning one of the three additional individual qualifying spots during the Region XII tourney held May 5-6 at Bedford Valley Golf Course.
Over 36 holes on the opening day of play, Toth demonstrated his prowess carding a 1-over 73 followed by a 3-over 75. All told, he posted nine birdies and 13 bogeys (with no doubles) for total of 148.
Not bad for a kid from New Boston Huron High whose original intentions were to bowl for Schoolcraft.
"It couldn't have turned out any better," Toth said. "I would have liked to bowl, but golf by far is my favorite thing to do. I haven't been playing for a very long time, but after high school I knew I wanted to keep playing. Just very glad to have those experiences. Hopefully I can be big part for the program moving forward to have somebody go to nationals. And other kids will hopefully see that and want to go to Schoolcraft because of it. It couldn't have turned out any better."
Larson called Toth "a total gift to the program," due to his professionalism, along with his dedication to golf, school and family.
"He was a great team member, a great teammate and he really tried to do his best every day as an individual," Larson said. "He's just going to hold a unique place in Schoolcraft golf. He set a great a great standard. If somebody comes close or exceeds that it will be amazing and that will be their own unique pathway, or nichè that they've carved out for themselves."
After obtaining his Associate's degree from Schoolcraft, Toth is contemplating where the road leads to next.
He's going to continue to caddy during the summer at Country Club of Detroit and possibly land an internship. Collegiate golf remains on his radar and he believes his best golfing days have yet to come.
He believes he has unfulfilled potential.
"I would like to keep playing," he said. "Like I said before, I didn't play good at all this year. I just had one good day that got me to nationals. I'd like to play. I am going to finish my four-year degree somewhere else. I don't know where yet, but I'm open to any offers or suggestions from people."
By Brad Emons