Miami golf looks to continue building momentum after strong showing at Purdue Invite

The collegiate golf postseason doesn’t begin until the spring, but any golfer will tell you that they spend most of the fall on the course. The Miami University RedHawks are no different.

With a fall schedule featuring nine invitationals across the country, the RedHawks are ensuring they are prepared for a deep postseason push and conference domination in the spring.

The RedHawks boast a talented squad that has already shown its ability to compete against some of the best programs in the country. Most notably, the team finished in second overall at the Purdue Fall Invitational on Sept. 22 and 23, beating several Big Ten opponents. Junior Michael Weber took home medalist honors, pacing the field with a score of eight under par.

Miami will stay active from September through November. For head coach JD Fletcher, these three months are all about getting the players on the course as much as possible before the winter.

“One thing that’s nice about this year is that we have a really deep team,” Fletcher said. “I’m trying to get guys, especially in the fall, as many opportunities as possible.”

The team started its fall slate at the Island Resort Intercollegiate from Sept. 1-2, placing sixth out of 12 teams. Two weeks later, four players competed at the individuals-only “Put Me In Coach” Invitational hosted by Ball State University.

Weber tied for first overall after shooting 1 under par, junior Cameron Pero tied for fifth overall, first year Liam Nelson tied for 10th and senior Sam West placed 13th.

That same weekend, the rest of the RedHawks traveled to Ontario to compete in the Canadian Collegiate Invitational. Things didn’t go as planned for Miami north of the border, as the team placed ninth out of 10 teams.

“Canada honestly just went horrible,” Fletcher said. “It was one of the worst events that I’ve coached or been a part of since I’ve been here in my four-year tenure. We unfortunately had our worst stuff against the best field we might see all year.”

The team bounced back in a big way at Purdue’s event following some lineup changes. Weber was inserted into the lineup following his strong performance at the “Put Me In Coach” invite, which paid immediate dividends for the RedHawks.

Weber led the invitational with a score of 208, eight under par. Pero and junior Brett Podobinski also placed in the top ten at the event.

Podobinksi expressed pride in the RedHawks for their performance against these tough opponents.

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“In my time here so far, I don’t think we’ve ever had three guys finish in the top 10,” Podobinski said. “It was just great to see that. Knowing that we can really beat those Big Ten teams, even at their home courses, is pretty sweet.”

Three more events face the RedHawks before the new year. Individuals will compete at The Indy at Forest Hills on Oct. 4. From Oct. 14-15, the team will travel to Pittsburgh for the RedHawk Intercollegiate. Miami’s last regional competition of 2024 occurs the following week with the Flyer Invitational in Kettering.

Miami closes out the fall season and 2024 at the Kapolei Invitational, played in Kapolei, Hawaii from Oct. 29-31. The event not only provides another opportunity for the RedHawks to compete against some of the top programs in the country, but also create lasting memories for the players to carry with them beyond their collegiate golf careers.

“Me and [Podobinski] were both lucky enough to be there last year,” senior Matt Mattioli said. “I don’t think any of us had a grasp on just how lucky we were to be a part of this team and to experience something like that. It was just an off the charts experience.

Week to week, there is an immense amount of travel and preparation that goes into a golf season. While the process can become overwhelming, it does help the players get accustomed to life as a professional golfer.

“Practice rounds take anywhere from five to six hours,” Fletcher said. “After that, we go get dinner, then we do our team meeting, then [the players] do homework, and we’re up at 5 a.m. the next day to play 15 hours and 36 holes of golf.”

For each player, the practice routine and preparation process going into a tournament looks different. This allows teammates to learn from each other during a practice round and share tips and strategies for playing different shots.

“For me, I played multiple sports growing up, so reflecting back it’s almost like a film study playing football,” Mattioli said. “There’s a lot of comparisons where you’re kind of attacking a hole similar to how a football team plans for a different offense or defense.”

The fall schedule serves as a preview for the RedHawks’ spring ambitions. Last year, they finished second at the Mid-American Conference (MAC) championship behind the Ball State Cardinals.

Miami shot five under par as a team and had one of its best performances in the 2024 season. Danny Fisher, who graduated last year, tied for fourth overall. Weber tied for ninth.

This team is determined to break through next spring and take the conference championship for the first time since 2015.

“I’d be lying [if I said] everybody’s number one priority wasn’t to go out and win the MAC championship this year,” Mattioloi said. “Last year, we had the lead going into the back nine of the last day, and it was really close between us and Ball State.”

The RedHawks will hit the links on Oct. 4 at the Indy at Forest Hills. Forest Hills Country Club is a challenging course that serves as a great test before the remaining team events.

“Forest Hills is a tricky one,” Podobinski said. “It’s short, it’s tight and the greens are crazy. You’ve got to be mentally prepared for crazy stuff to happen, and you just never know what you’re going to get out there.”

Though the spring season is still five months away, the RedHawks are using every invitational during these fall months to prepare for a deep postseason push. Their success as big-name events shows that Miami is ready for the MAC come spring.

kehreswe@miamioh.edu