Rockets boys golf program taking off for new heights

Burlington Central boys golf is enjoying its finest season ever with (from left) Luke Fleming, David Hartwell, Kyle Brooks, Sam Schmalz, Peter Cappas and Matt Allison leading the way.
MICHAEL SMART | Staff Photographer

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BURLINGTON -- Think about how long 20 years is. Take a second.

Two decades. Since 1988 we've had five presidential elections, two major wars, four "Saw" movies (a fifth comes out later this month).

Something else has been going on since 1988. That is the Burlington Central boys golf program. But something different is happening this year that hadn't happened in the last 20 years while all those other things were happening: The team has advanced to sectionals and has a chance to advance Downstate.

The resurgence has been led by three individuals. Senior standouts Peter Cappas and Sam Schmalz and coach Brody Hamel are leading the Rockets into uncharted territory, and rewriting the school record book in the process.

In the history of the program, one golfer has gone Downstate. This season, Cappas and Schmalz are both in position to do so.

Entering the season, and given the two-decade period of unremarkable team play, Hamel had reason to temper his enthusiasm.

"Coming in, I knew we had Sam and Peter back and they were both four-year starters," he said. "They're both great leaders and very dedicated, so I knew we would be good, but I did not expect to see so many records broken. They've surpassed my expectations. We're shooting scores I couldn't imagine we could shoot. I could not be prouder of them."

The records Hamel is talking about started falling after the team's first tournament of the season on Aug. 20 at Sycamore. Burlington shot a 311, a school record for an 18-hole event.

The team also set records for a nine-hole team score (144) and Cappas set a school record for an individual nine-hole round (31). Schmalz shot a 71 at the DeKalb Invitational to set the school record for an individual 18-hole round.

For Hamel, the key to the program's turnaround is commitment, from himself, but more importantly from the players.

"A lot of it started in the summer," he explained. "We had several guys play in summer tournaments and we had a handful of practices in the summer and I had great turnouts for those. So I think the dedication and practice has paid off tremendously."

Hamel went on to say that in the past, many of his golfers also were members of higher-profile sports teams such as baseball and basketball, and that their dedication to golf had sometimes been put on the back burner. That has not been the case this season.

Schmalz and Cappas have both led with their excellent play on the course (they're both averaging about 38 per 9 holes). But while Cappas leads largely by example, he explained that his teammate is much more demonstrative and hands-on with the younger players.

"(Schmalz) is definitely a lot more of a vocal leader than I am," Cappas said. "He'll help out the younger guys and if he sees them on the course he'll cheer them on. I am quieter and we balance it out really well. We have a good mixture of leadership."

While Hamel is quick to cite the leadership of Cappas and Schmalz as a main factor of the team's resurgence, they are just as quick to say Hamel himself deserves credit.

"He is so encouraging to all of us," Schmalz said. "He is always out there on the course, and if we're going bad, he's telling us to keep our heads up and he's doing a great job."

The Rockets will travel to Crystal Woods for today's Marian Central Class 2A Sectional. Even if the ride ends there for the team, Hamel thinks they a lot to be proud of.

"I want the seniors especially to realize how far they've come since they were freshmen," he said. "Back then, we would hope to get four scores out of the whole 20-person roster in the 40s. And now we have 15 guys battling it out that are shooting below 45. So I want everyone to know how far they've brought the program."

Luke Fleming is the other senior still playing for the Rockets. The others are two sophomores -- David Hartwell and Matt Allison -- and junior Kyle Brooks. Their strong play this season behind the leadership of Hamel, Cappas and Schmalz indicates there might not be five more elections, two more wars, and another four "Saw" movies before Burlington Central golf is a factor once more. Boys Golf