Madison’s Wilson taking new swing, confidence to state tournament

Phillip Wilson wouldn’t mind being the second state boys golf champion in Madison High School history.

And he thinks he’s got the game to do it.

The last year hasn’t been an easy road for the 17-year-old senior, but Wilson will close his prep career Friday and Saturday in the Division II state tournament at Ohio State University’s Scarlet Course in Columbus.

“Right now, it’s the best golf I’ve played in competition for sure,” he said. “I’m in a good rhythm, and not everything’s there yet.

“If I start hitting all those fairways or making those longer putts, under par is definitely achievable for me and a state title is not out of the question at all.”

Wilson shot a 76 at the sectional tournament at PipeStone Golf Course and followed with a 74 at the district event at Glenview Golf Course.

Mike McGee gave Madison its lone state championship in 1976, capturing the Class AA individual crown.

“I’m really excited for state. It’s going to be fun,” Wilson said. “I don’t usually get nervous, but it’s going to be a new feeling for me. I think once I hit that first shot, it’ll be golf mode and I’ll be in the zone I need to be in.”

He made it to district last year, but struggled when he got there.

“I shot an 81,” said Wilson, shaking his head. “After that, I kind of took a new approach to it. I almost thought of quitting. I took like three months off from golf completely and then took a trip down to Myrtle Beach to get my whole swing back on plane.”

He had been playing for years with a mostly self-taught swing. Wilson went to South Carolina to work with Brad Redding, a well-known professional instructor. Redding videotaped his swing, and Wilson was stunned.

“It’s really unbelievable to see it through my eyes how bad it was to begin with to the way it is now,” he said. “It’s just unreal in comparison. It’s such a different experience being able to see yourself swing instead of hearing somebody tell you what you’re doing wrong.”

With Redding’s help, Wilson became a better, more consistent player. It took a while to deal with his muscle memory issues, and clearly he’s still not as good as he’d like to be. But the process is working.

“It’s hard to describe the difference in my swing,” Wilson said. “But my miss rate’s lower, and my misses are better. Everything is so much better than it was last year at this time.”

Madison coach Casey Weidner is a firm believer in Wilson.

“He’s a wonderful kid that comes from a great family,” Weidner said. “Sometimes when I get kids as freshmen, they’re yes sir, no sir, but by the time they get to be seniors, their attitudes may have changed. But not him. He has been a humble, fun-to-be-around kid since the very first day that I met him.

“This isn’t a fluke for him to be here. He hits the ball long and really doesn’t have a weakness in his game. The only weakness is sometimes his temperament. When he hits a bad shot, sometimes he gets down on himself. The one thing I started teaching my kids years ago is the most important shot they’re going to hit all day is the next one.”

Wilson doesn’t disagree with his coach’s assessment.

“Changing my swing was definitely easier than fixing the mental part going into competitions,” he said. “But I am getting better. The little things help with that. Just breathing is such a big part of keeping my head straight.”

Wilson’s been wielding a hot putter of late.

“Part of the mental game is feeling like I’m going to make every putt. I visualize making it,” he said. “At sectionals I only hit six greens in regulation, and I had 14 pars that day. My one-putts were just unbelievable. From five to 10 feet, it’s the best I’ve ever putted through competition.”

He works at Wildwood Golf Club in Middletown and appreciates the help Wildwood pro Jordan Lawson has provided. Wilson said several other men deserve thanks for helping him, especially Casey and Charlie Weidner and Madison superintendent Curtis Philpot.

“I’ve had a golf club in my hand since I was little,” Wilson said. “I didn’t really embrace it until I was probably 12 years old. Once I had that moment, it was, ‘Dad, can you take me to the golf course or take me to the driving range?’ about every night.”

He’ll be sad to see his prep career end, but there is one way to ease that pain.

“Going into sectionals, I wasn’t ready to take the jersey off yet, and I’m still not really ready,” Wilson said. “But there’s going to be a time when it happens this Saturday, so I want to make it a good time.”

• Blackburn returns to state: Monroe senior Sammi Blackburn will compete in the Division II state girls golf tournament Friday and Saturday on OSU's Gray Course.

Blackburn tied for third place at state last year.

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