Robinson Wins GAM Boys Championship At Washtenaw GC

Winslow Robinson of Traverse City Wins GAM Boys’ Championship

  YPSILANTI – Winslow Robinson of Traverse City (pictured above) pulled away on the back nine to win the first GAM Boys’ Championship Wednesday at Washtenaw Golf Club.

  The senior-to-be at Traverse City West High School shot a final round 3-under 69 and pulled away to a four-shot win. It was his first GAM title in a tournament that was started this year as a replacement for the former GAM Junior Kickoff Championship.

  “I mean this is a big tournament to win, and I’ll get invited to the GAM Invitational in the fall, that’s big,” he said. “It’s exciting to win something like this.”

  Robinson’s 69 put him at 2-under 142 for the tournament, four ahead of a trio of golfers.

  Will Pollack of Grand Rapids, who shot a closing 72, Mathieu Duflo of Ada, who shot a 73, and Adam Thanaporn of Ann Arbor, who shot 73, all finished at 146.

  Parker Stalcup of Lake Orion, who shot 72 for 148, rounded out the top five.

  In the 15-and-under division, Harris Hoekwater of Grand Rapids emerged as champion. He shot a 72 for 143, topping Draven Rogers of Fort Gratiot, who shot 73 for 145.

  Jules Avot of Bloomfield Hills, who shot 76 for 150, Parker Westcott of Manchester, who shot 76 for 152, and Aidan Oake of Howell, who shot 78 for 152, rounded out the top five.

   In winning the overall title, Robinson shot a 2-under 34 on the back nine to pull away, and it included a holed-out wedge for an eagle-2 on hole 16.

  “That was exciting,” he said. “I hit a lot of solid shots, and a lot of good recovery shots that I didn’t try to get too much out of – just kind of played it safe. I also hit a couple of shots (close to the pin) and made a couple of short putts, too.”

  He said he was not playing well earlier in the summer, so he took a week break from golf.

  “I came back and started playing some really good golf,” he said. “Instead of grinding on it, sometimes you just need to break for a little bit, right?”

   In the 15-and-under play, Hoekwater took a break of sorts, too. He missed his first day of school to finish the championship and was happy about it.

  “This is definitely a big win,” he said, citing a birdie at No. 10 as a momentum builder. “I was just focused on my game and happened to hold (the field) off, and that’s what I was trying to do.”

  The 15-year-old Grand Rapids South Christian student said the win gives him a lot of confidence moving forward.

  “I’ve had a little bit of a rough summer, but this was a good way to finish it,” he said.

RESULTS: at GAM.org or on Golf Genius