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Some of Indiana's top high school golfers won't be at state meet — by their own choosing. Here's why
The top golfer coming out of Thursday's regional at Stonehenge Golf Club was no surprise. Fairfield senior Brayden Miller, who fired a 5-under par 71, was last year's wire-to-wire state champion.
The next two top finishers were also not a surprise. Westview senior Silas Haarer and Fort Wayne Bishop Dwenger junior Alex Holder, like Miller, are contenders to win the IHSAA individual state championship on Tuesday and Wednesday at Prairie View Golf Club in Carmel. The difference for Haarer and Holder is that they did not compete in the state meet last year.
In fact, they did not compete in high school golf at all. For elite golfers, the decision to play high school is not as easy as just coming out for the team.
'(High school golf) took up a pretty good chunk of what I thought was going to be an important time for my recruiting,' Holder said. 'High school golf is fun and cool, but I didn't think it was going to make a big difference for (college) coaches to see my high school stuff. I thought being in the other summer tournaments was a huge advantage for me. It was going to be hard to go to state and get my exposure to college coaches.'
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It is difficult to argue Holder's logic. Or his results. After spending much of the winter of his sophomore year in Florida, Holder finished second in the Indiana Junior championship, two shots behind winner Justin Hicks and one ahead of Miller. He also reached the round of 32 in the U.S. Junior Amateur, among his other accomplishments.
In October of last year, Holder committed to Auburn … the defending national champions.
'I think it was really helpful for my future career,' Holder said. 'It worked out. It definitely sucks missing out on state but I was able to play in front of the Auburn coaches and then come back and play high school golf this year. I think everyone dreams of winning a state championship. If I had a chance to do that it would be super cool.'
Micah Sheffer, one of the state's top golfers out of Brownstown Central, opted not to play high school golf this spring. Sheffer has already committed to Purdue and has plans to graduate early and enroll in college in January of 2026.
'Playing high school golf is important,' Sheffer said. 'You need to play at least one or two years. Golf is an individual sport but being part of a team makes it that much more important. But I felt like not playing high school golf this spring allowed me to grow so much more because I was able to play in travel tournaments and see the best competition out there. In Kentucky and Ohio, they play high school golf in the fall so those players are all out there playing. On top of that, I kind of like having the freedom of being able to take a day off or play 18 holes when I want to.'
Sheffer said the reaction was 'probably 50-50' on his decision not to play with his high school team. Last year, his team finished sixth at the regional and failed to advance and his 75 left him three shots short of qualifying for state as an individual.
'I think everybody understood and respected my decision,' he said. 'They weren't necessarily happy losing one of their best players, but I think they understood for my development going to Purdue that it was going to be better for me. My goal right now is go to Purdue and be ready to play when I get there.'
Sheffer was a three-sport athlete at Brownstown Central, also competing in football and basketball. Some of his best friends are his high school teammates.
'Don't get me wrong, I missed playing with the guys and going out there and having fun,' he said. 'But when I look back, I know it was the right decision to help me get ready.'
Haarer, the state runner-up two years ago, did not play high school golf last year at Westview. He shot a 67 at the regional last week to finish one shot behind defending state champion Miller.
Weighing the pros and cons of playing high school golf is not a new phenomenon. Erica Shepherd of Center Grove, a two-time All-American at Duke, did not play high school golf.
For Holder, the opportunity to step away and come back again worked out.
'Sometimes golf gets too serious,' Holder said. 'High school golf is a lot of fun and you make a lot of great memories. It's been great for me to come back to it.'
