SE: Kansas Am Champ Schultz Prepared for Spotlight at U.S. Amateur
Aug 04, 2021 | Men's Golf, Sports Extra
By: Austin Siegel
He was coming down the stretch at the Kansas Amateur, a few holes away from a championship, and Cooper Schultz had one thought on his mind: don't let him win with par.
The "him" was fellow finalist Brock Polhill. The prize was the 111th Kansas Amateur Championship. A tune up of sorts for the U.S. Amateur, held at Oakmont Country Club in Pennsylvania beginning on Monday.
"You've got to force him to make birdies to beat you," Schultz said. "If he birdies out and he beats me, good for him and he deserves it. But I can't hand holes to him."
In a match play format, it didn't matter how many strokes Schultz was up by. At the beginning of the back nine, with a two-hole lead, the Andover native just needed to play his game.
Cue a clutch birdie putt on 11. An impressive chip to keep pace with Polhill on 13. It would take another long putt to seal it for Schultz, a fitting way to wrap up another milestone in his golfing career.
"The biggest step forward in my game has definitely been on the putting green," he said. "Last fall, my putting wasn't all there, I was switching putters and my confidence was really low. So, I went back to the putter that I've had a lot of success with and got it all fixed."
Schultz now sets his sights on the U.S. Amateur at Oakmont, with coverage on both Golf Channel and Peacock.
It's the latest chapter in an impressive summer for the redshirt freshman on K-State Men's Golf. Just don't think for a second that Schultz came out of nowhere.
He won the 2019 Kansas Junior Amateur by seven shots, along with third-place finishes at the 2018 AJGA Lockton Junior and 2019 AJGA Kansas Junior. By the time he arrived at K-State, Schultz was one of the top golfers in the state.
He stepped on campus ready to learn from K-State head coach Grant Robbins and an experienced clubhouse of Wildcats from around the world. That started on day one, even if it had nothing to do with golf.
"The first day I was there with my roommate Luke [O'Neill], I couldn't understand a word he said because of his accent," Schultz said. "I was driving down the road and he was sitting right next to me, but I just kept saying 'What?' I had never heard a true Irish accent until then, so it was a bit of a change."
Schultz just missed making the K-State travel roster as a freshman, but the redshirt season was an opportunity to improve his game that he called a blessing in disguise.
Another year to practice and improve his PGA Tour ranking has Schultz thinking about what he could accomplish at K-State.
"I just want to keep playing as well as I have been," he said. "I think that's going to be the true test. Obviously, I have to qualify for every tournament next season because I haven't played against a lot of guys in the Big 12. I know where my game is at, but I want to see how good the rest of the conference really is."
First up though, Schultz will look to test himself against the rest of the country at Oakmont. And he won't have the same home-field advantage that made his win at the Kansas Amateur and Crestview Country Club in Wichita so special.
With personal connections to most of the golfers on his hometown course, Schultz said he knew nearly half the field at the Kansas Amateur. Plenty of his former high school teammates on a state championship team at Andover also came out to support him.
"It's going to be way different going to Oakmont knowing absolutely nobody," he said.
On a course that's tested everyone from Dustin Johnson to Ben Hogan, Schultz is ready to deal with the elements at the nine-time home of the U.S. Open.
He's already played at Valhalla Golf Club, site of the PGA Championship and Ryder Cup, and Omaha Country Club, which hosted the U.S. Senior Open. Schultz is expecting a similar challenge at Oakmont.
"It's about how firm the greens are. When I went to Maryland to play in my U.S. Open sectional qualifier this year, I had never played on greens that firm in my life - it was just a different kind of golf. If you missed short of the green, there were some holes where it would run back like 30 yards. It was less about distance and more about precision."
The experience at Oakmont is one Schultz plans to bring back to Colbert Hills and Manhattan, as K-State Men's Golf returns to the course in the fall.
Along with Schultz, the Wildcats bring back a talented squad led by 2021 NCAA Regional Qualifier Tim Tillmanns and new faces like Kansas High School state champion Nicklaus Mason.
In Pennsylvania next week, one member of that talented group has his sights set on the top of the leaderboard.
"Just play my game and stay focused. I can drive the ball really well so that thick rough shouldn't be a problem. I hope they grow the rough up like eight inches, that would be the greatest thing ever," Schultz said. "I'm not going there for second place."
He was coming down the stretch at the Kansas Amateur, a few holes away from a championship, and Cooper Schultz had one thought on his mind: don't let him win with par.
The "him" was fellow finalist Brock Polhill. The prize was the 111th Kansas Amateur Championship. A tune up of sorts for the U.S. Amateur, held at Oakmont Country Club in Pennsylvania beginning on Monday.
"You've got to force him to make birdies to beat you," Schultz said. "If he birdies out and he beats me, good for him and he deserves it. But I can't hand holes to him."
In a match play format, it didn't matter how many strokes Schultz was up by. At the beginning of the back nine, with a two-hole lead, the Andover native just needed to play his game.
Cue a clutch birdie putt on 11. An impressive chip to keep pace with Polhill on 13. It would take another long putt to seal it for Schultz, a fitting way to wrap up another milestone in his golfing career.
"The biggest step forward in my game has definitely been on the putting green," he said. "Last fall, my putting wasn't all there, I was switching putters and my confidence was really low. So, I went back to the putter that I've had a lot of success with and got it all fixed."
Schultz now sets his sights on the U.S. Amateur at Oakmont, with coverage on both Golf Channel and Peacock.
Thanks to a 6-under par 66 in the final round, @CooperSchultz23 has qualified for the 121st @USGA US Amateur#KStateMGOLF x #USAmateur
— K-State Men's Golf (@KStateMGolf) July 13, 2021
🗞 https://t.co/bhcF3Hz7vy
📊 https://t.co/MWVejLBK2B pic.twitter.com/K0xJSplRO2
It's the latest chapter in an impressive summer for the redshirt freshman on K-State Men's Golf. Just don't think for a second that Schultz came out of nowhere.
He won the 2019 Kansas Junior Amateur by seven shots, along with third-place finishes at the 2018 AJGA Lockton Junior and 2019 AJGA Kansas Junior. By the time he arrived at K-State, Schultz was one of the top golfers in the state.
He stepped on campus ready to learn from K-State head coach Grant Robbins and an experienced clubhouse of Wildcats from around the world. That started on day one, even if it had nothing to do with golf.
"The first day I was there with my roommate Luke [O'Neill], I couldn't understand a word he said because of his accent," Schultz said. "I was driving down the road and he was sitting right next to me, but I just kept saying 'What?' I had never heard a true Irish accent until then, so it was a bit of a change."
Schultz just missed making the K-State travel roster as a freshman, but the redshirt season was an opportunity to improve his game that he called a blessing in disguise.
Another year to practice and improve his PGA Tour ranking has Schultz thinking about what he could accomplish at K-State.
"I just want to keep playing as well as I have been," he said. "I think that's going to be the true test. Obviously, I have to qualify for every tournament next season because I haven't played against a lot of guys in the Big 12. I know where my game is at, but I want to see how good the rest of the conference really is."
First up though, Schultz will look to test himself against the rest of the country at Oakmont. And he won't have the same home-field advantage that made his win at the Kansas Amateur and Crestview Country Club in Wichita so special.
With personal connections to most of the golfers on his hometown course, Schultz said he knew nearly half the field at the Kansas Amateur. Plenty of his former high school teammates on a state championship team at Andover also came out to support him.
Huge thank you for everyone who came out to support me, it truly means a lot. Also a big thanks to @centlinksgolf and @theCrestviewCC for all the hard work you did setting up this amazing tournament and creating memories that will last a life time! pic.twitter.com/mhhGIU2YvS
— Cooper Schultz (@CooperSchultz23) July 26, 2021
"It's going to be way different going to Oakmont knowing absolutely nobody," he said.
On a course that's tested everyone from Dustin Johnson to Ben Hogan, Schultz is ready to deal with the elements at the nine-time home of the U.S. Open.
He's already played at Valhalla Golf Club, site of the PGA Championship and Ryder Cup, and Omaha Country Club, which hosted the U.S. Senior Open. Schultz is expecting a similar challenge at Oakmont.
"It's about how firm the greens are. When I went to Maryland to play in my U.S. Open sectional qualifier this year, I had never played on greens that firm in my life - it was just a different kind of golf. If you missed short of the green, there were some holes where it would run back like 30 yards. It was less about distance and more about precision."
The experience at Oakmont is one Schultz plans to bring back to Colbert Hills and Manhattan, as K-State Men's Golf returns to the course in the fall.
Along with Schultz, the Wildcats bring back a talented squad led by 2021 NCAA Regional Qualifier Tim Tillmanns and new faces like Kansas High School state champion Nicklaus Mason.
In Pennsylvania next week, one member of that talented group has his sights set on the top of the leaderboard.
"Just play my game and stay focused. I can drive the ball really well so that thick rough shouldn't be a problem. I hope they grow the rough up like eight inches, that would be the greatest thing ever," Schultz said. "I'm not going there for second place."
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