If you were to search freshman Jake Williams’ profile on Ohio Athletics’ website, little would be found.
No history, no statistics, no information on his past. He’s almost completely incognito, save his photo, high school and hometown information.
A similar lack of information is on file for juniors Thomas Leech and Will Stines, who have only played in a combined three tournaments their three years at Ohio.
“Quite frankly they just haven’t gotten the chance to qualify for tournaments,” said Ohio coach Bob Cooley. “They are all good kids, they all work hard and they were all good junior golfers. They just haven’t shot the best.”
Even though the trio doesn’t regularly line up for Ohio in tournaments, their clubs hold more weight than one would assume. The three take a lot of pride on staying home to work on their game when the Bobcats travel afar for tournaments.
“I think I take it more seriously than some of the other guys,” Stines said. “When I’m home, I’ll just try to stay in shape and go to the range to get better each day.”
Leech, who hails from Pittsburgh, said he practices with his golf instructor at home when the team is gone. He mentioned getting the nod to compete as one of Ohio’s top five golfers is painstaking because the short timeframe between qualification and competition.
“It can be pretty challenging to qualify, and we usually don’t find out until a few days before the tournament,” Leech said. “If I don’t qualify, I usually go home and work with my instructor or stay here and play over the weekend and get ready for the next week.”
Leech, who last played at the Firestone Invitational in the fall, noted being consistent and making more birdies instead of pars is something he is still striving to do in his third year with the Bobcats.
For Williams, a Jupiter, Fla. native, it’s just a matter of being patient and working out kinks in his game to give him his first opportunity to play. Since the golf program doesn’t often redshirt athletes, the training is different for Williams, who will only have four years to compete under Cooley.
“Not traveling means you have to work harder,” Williams said. “Because obviously you want to get in that top five. Being a freshman it’s not too disappointing (to not play) because it keeps me working hard.”
Stines said that Cooley expects the same effort from all his players in terms of training, and that just because some student-athletes don’t travel with the team doesn’t mean the 26-year veteran coach doesn’t push them just as hard as the starting five.
“(Cooley) can sometimes have his favorites,” said Stines, an Upper Arlington native. “He does a lot of one-on-one which can be good and bad at times, but he has a good relationship with all of us.”
The end of the spring season won’t be the final chapter in Leech, Stines and Williams’ Bobcats careers. Cooley thinks their development started later than most of his players, but that each of them could compete with the top five sometime soon.
“We all wish we could shoot in the 60s and 70s,” Cooley said. “They are all good kids, they just didn’t develop properly as some of the other guys over the years.”
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