Damascus Emerges as Golf Powerhouse
Andrew Yakubik of Damascus was the second overall male winner at the 2009 MPSSAA State Golf Tournament.
Photo By: Tresor Thomas / GamedayMD.com
Andrew shot a 77 on Day 1 and a 73 on Day 2 for a combined total of 150.
Photo By: Tresor Thomas / GamedayMD.com
Written by: Marc Bastow
DAMASCUS, MD - Let's face it: the first word somebody in Montgomery County says when they are asked to associate the words "Damascus" and "powerhouse", is "football". But it's time to take a second look this year and include the words "golf team".
"This has been a great year," says fourth-year head golf coach Eric Brenneman in what has to be one of the understatements of the year. Indeed it has been: the team won the prestigious Yachmetz Division earlier this season, and followed that success with wins in both the team and individual District II championships.
Capping off that success was an individual win in the First Annual Falls Road Invitational. And now the team has three players in the running for a state individual championship heading into tomorrow's final round at Potomac Ridge Golf course in Waldorf.
The Damascus golf team's success story is unique in several ways.
First and foremost is that while most of the traditional Montgomery County golf powers like Churchill, Wootton, Walter Johnson and Whitman might have 25-30 players try out for their team, Brenneman has never had more that 15, so the depth of talent beyond the #1-#4 players is historically thin.
Second, the majority of the players do not play out of any country club, instead playing and practicing on mostly public courses throughout the county during the off-season. As one coach remarked to Brenneman earlier this season, "what you guys have done is amazing because you really don't have any "country club" guys."
Damascus's rise to golf prominence started in 2006, the same year Brenneman became the coach. At the time, Damascus competed in the Kyle Division, the lowest of the three divisions in the county. Enter then freshman and now seniors Andrew Yakubik and Brian Fowler.
"Andrew practices and plays all the time, and just works really hard," Brenneman said. Both brought a different level of competitive spirit and talent to the team, and their results and work ethic laid the foundation for the program.
The following year (2007) Brenneman picked up two new players, Cody Pestun and Brett Myers, two boys whom Brenneman says "loved golf and were motivated to succeed at every level." Brenneman was completely sold on Myers from the start.
"Brett as a freshman was just ice on the course, just really cool and smooth." Combined with Yakubik and Fowler, Brenneman found himself with a solid first-four just in time for a move up to (highest level) Yachmetz play in 2008. The result of having depth and talent showed right away, as the team finished third in the division with a record of 14-4, the best ever in Damascus golf.
In order to take their success to yet another level however, Brenneman felt his team needed depth at the #4 and #5 spots, a typical place where county powerhouses still had solid players. Sophomore Austin Sanquist, who had not made the team as a freshman in 2008, and incoming freshman Nick Shealey, filled the bill for Brenneman, rounding out his squad to start the 2009 season.
"All the stars aligned," is how Brenneman described the situation at the start of the season.
Indeed, they did. Led by their sterling seniors, Damascus finished the season 17-1 and won the Yachmetz division for the first time by .66 points over Churchill. Individual stroke leaders in the division included Myers in second place, Yakubik in fourth, and Pestun in ninth.
Damascus followed up their Division title with stellar play in the District II qualifying event preceding the Maryland State Championships. In addition to winning the team title, Myers won the individual medal, shooting a 76 at Poolesville Golf Course, while Yakubik finished third and Preston fifth.
After the District Tournament, Pestun won the First Annual Falls Road Invitational, which was open to both public and private school players. All Meyers did during that tournament was card a hole-in-one on the 14th hole.
While the individual titles are representative of the talent level now playing at Damascus, the ultimate goals are team based, and Damascus swept them all as they headed for the State tournament after the Division tournament ended. "I am thrilled for the team," gushed Brenneman.
Unfortunately for the team, they did not qualify for a state team championship, missing the cut by one stroke on Monday at Potomac Ridge. On the bright side however, Yakubik, Myers, and Pestun remain in contention for individual honors, trailing the leader, Bart George of Broadneck, by three, seven, and eight strokes, respectively.
The tournament resumes Wednesday with a 10:00 am shotgun start in Waldorf. The event is open to the public with no charge.
Brenneman's next goal is to build on the program's success. "I need to work on next year, although I have a team with a lot of experience." Brenneman is hoping that the success of the team starts to spread and more players will come out to Rattlewood and Little Bennett Golf Courses next year to try out and make the team.
With a base group that includes Pestun, Myers, Sanquist, and Shealey, the program is in very good hands. Newcomers will have a lot to look forward to in trying to maintain and build upon a program that looks a lot like a powerhouse in Damascus.
