Top photo Ada varsity golf team: front L-R) Lawson Klingler, Grady Morgan; back) assistant coach Geddes Klingler, Brody Rister, Ethan Lawrence, Sam Crawford, head coach Kurt Klingler.
Bottom photo Returning Ada golf lettermen, L-R) Lawson Klingler, Brody Rister, Ethan Lawrence, Sam Crawford.
By Cort Reynolds
ADA – The improving Ada High School boys varsity golf team returns four lettermen from the 2023-2024 team, playing for third-year head coach Kurt Klingler.
“It’s exciting since four of the five players have varsity playing experience,” Klingler enthused. “It is a lot more enjoyable to coach when you have to spend less time teaching basic fundamentals. We can concentrate more on teaching the nuances of the game.
“Our second and third shots are the ones, pitching to get on the green in general, need work,” he offered. “Controlling our shots is key.
“The kids have played a lot of golf in the off-season; they want to be better and they have taken ownership of their games,” Klingler noted. “They have really dropped strokes.”
The Bulldogs are a new member of the Blanchard Valley Conference this season after leaving the Northwest Conference.
“The three BVC-tournament format gives you a chance to see how the better players play on different courses throughout the season,” he noted. “The NWC was really good in golf, but it is still great competition in the BVC.”
The Ada team finished eighth in the initial BVC pre-season tournament on August 5 at Findlay, which was the first Bulldog interscholastic athletic event as a full-fledged member of the BVC.
Ada lost a dual match to Ft. Jennings and then finished 10th in the 12-team Bluffton Pirate Invitational on August 12. The Bulldogs defeated Arlington 209-222 in a road dual match Aug 13 to record their first win of the season. Ada then split a tri-match, beating Pandora-Gilboa on Aug. 14.
Sophomore southpaw Brody Rister is the top returning golfer and is expected to hold down the top spot in the lineup.
“Brody hits a really nice drive off the tee,” said Klingler. “His putting is getting better, but like most of the team, he needs to work on chipping and putting.”
Rister finished a team-best 30th at the sectional meet last fall with an 18-hole score of 96.
Ethan Lawrence is a powerful 6-6 senior returnee. “He is such a big, strong kid who can really swing a club and hit the ball a ton,” said Klingler. “He hits drives close to 300 yards.
“The short game is also something he needs to improve as well. His chipping has improved but his putting and touch around the game needs work.”
Sophomore Lawson Klingler is expected to hold down the third position. “From last year to this year, he has gotten a little more control,” said Klingler.
“He doesn’t hit it as far as Ethan does, but he can hit it 180 yards. His chipping and putting are better. His confidence in his swing and clubs has improved.”
Junior Sam Crawford returns as the number four linkster in the lineup.
“Sam has grown a lot over the summer and gotten much stronger,” noted the coach. “He hits a very nice tee shot and hits some nice approach shots. Sometimes his short irons can give him fits.”
Freshman Grady Morgan is the fifth golfer and lone newcomer to the five-man roster.
“Grady has a little experience with golf, but a lot of the fundamentals, rules and etiquette are still new for him,” said Klingler. “He has a lot to learn, but he has come a long way in the short time he has been with us.
“He comes from a golf-loving family – both of his brothers played for Ada, and his dad likes to play golf. He is getting better week by week,” he added.
As for the BVC race, Klingler says Van Buren and Liberty-Benton “look pretty hard to beat.”
Regarding season goals, he said “most of the guys are talking about hoping to be 10-12 strokes better than last year individually. We would like to get under 200 strokes as a team, then set new goals from there.”
Last year, Delphos Jefferson won the Northwest Conference tournament title with 348 strokes. Allen East tied Leipsic for second at 353, but AE won the overall NWC title due to their combined regular season crown (12-4) and championship meet showing.
The Bulldogs totaled 419 strokes to finish ninth. Ada was 0-16 in NWC play in their final season as a member of the NWC.
Graduated Ada senior Jack Baumgartner registered a personal-best 18-hole round of 46-44=90 to earn second team All-NWC honors. He is the only player lost from last year’s program.
