Regina’s Schomer Runner-up at RVC Meet
Photo by Jeff Yoder / RVC meet photo gallery
Ryan Murken
Your Prep Sports
RIVERSIDE – Power has never been a problem for Mark Schomer.
The Regina junior has always been able to pound a golf ball.
It has been the finesse part of the game that has eluded Schomer at times during his prep career.
That certainly wasn’t the case for Schomer on Tuesday at the River Valley Conference meet.
Schomer used some razor sharp putting to post a 77 on Tuesday on his way to an individual runner-up finish at the RVC meet at Blue Top Ridge Golf Course in Riverside.
“I was getting off the tee really well but today I got a lot of putts to roll,” Schomer said. “That really helps boost your score when you can make some putts.”
The runner-up finish by Schomer helped Regina place sixth in the team standings with a 359 and provided a piece of redemption for Schomer after a disappointing conference showing last season.
Schomer shaved 10 strokes off the 87 he shot during a 17th place finish at the RVC meet last year at Muscatine Municipal Golf Course.
“I’m really, really happy with how I played,” Schomer said. “Normally it’s kind of hard in the wind and with a little rain so to be able to get a low score today and bounce back after not a great conference performance last year feels really good.”
Consistency was the key for Schomer on Tuesday and it started on the putting green.
After a double bogey on his fourth hole of the day Schomer carded pars on 11 of his final 14 holes.
The biggest strength for Schomer on Tuesday? His putter.
“He was putting a lot better today versus when we were out here for a practice round and that has been one of the main points of emphasis that I’ve tried to get him to focus on this year,” first-year Regina coach Christopher Stauffer said. “His swing has always been really good but like most kids his putting is what he needs to work on the most.”
Schomer had just 12 putts while shooting a 37 in a dual against West Branch on Monday.
The junior carried that success over to Tuesday where he had 15 putts while shooting a 38 on the front nine.
“It helps that our home course is Brown Deer the speeds of the greens are pretty similar,” Schomer said. “That really helped with my putting today.”
Schomer closed with a 39 on the back nine to match third-place finish Noah Schlabaugh of Mid-Prairie with a 77.
The runner-up finish earned Schomer RVC Elite all-conference honors for the first time.
“Definitely in the last couple of weeks he has improved his putting,” Stauffer said. “That has been his point of emphasis for this season and beyond. If he wants to continue to grow in the game he just needs to work on his putting.”
RVC Meet
At Blue Top Ridge Golf Course
Team scores – 1. West Branch 324; 2. Mid-Prairie 342; 3. Tipton 347; 4. North Cedar 348; 5. Monticello 349; 6. Regina 359; 7. Wilton 360; 8. Durant 360; 9. Anamosa 368; 10. Northeast 379; 11. Cascade 385; 12. Camanche 412; 13. Bellevue 424
Individual leaders – 1. Dylan Countryman (WB) 40-35 – 75; 2. Mark Schomer (ICR) 38-39 –77; 3. Noah Schlabaugh (M-P) 40-37 – 77; 4. Aman Egge (ANA) 38-43 – 81; 5. Brady Knoop (WB) 38-43 – 81; 6. Justin Recker (MON) 42-40 – 82; 7. Brock Hartley (WIL) 39-44 – 83; 8. Ted Bridges (WB) 40-44 – 84; 9. Kaleb Sexton (WB) 41-43 – 84; 10. Monte Slabaugh (M-P) 40-44 – 84; 11. Connor Lambert (MON) 44-41 – 85; 12. Lucas Callison (DUR) 42-43 – 85; 13. Logan Callison (DUR) 42-43 – 85; 14. Luke Becker (TIP) 47-38 – 85
West Branch (324) – Dylan Countryman 40-35 – 75; Brady Knoop 38-43 – 81; Ted Bridges 40-44 – 84; Kaleb Sexton 41-43 – 84; Brady Lukavsky 45-50 – 95; Gage Gingerich 47-50 – 97
Regina (359) – Mark Schomer 38-39 – 77; Andrew Miller 40-50 – 90; Nic Hein 51-42 – 93; Casey Daniel 46-53 – 99; Andrew Triplett 48-54 – 102; James Clark 52-52 – 104
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