Chipping and Putting with Brian Ottenweller
10/21/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
As this past summer approached and then rolled on, something was just not clicking for sophomore Brian Ottenweller. His swing just did not feel comfortable. He wasn't playing well at all. He had even gone to see his swing coach just to get another look at it, but he was just not comfortable with his game.
So, what did he do He started to focus on other things. He took a break from golf and focused on other things, all along knowing in the back of his mind he needed to try to get back on the course. He needed to try and work out the kinks in his swing.
So, when he decided to get working on his game he focused on his short game. From there everything seemed to take off. Working on the little parts of his game, helped him regain his swing as he stepped back on campus for his second season.
"Huh, it's really can be all about the little things," he would say with a smile. "Who would have guessed"
When you first meet Ottenweller, the first thing you have to notice is his smile. The way he is always cheerful and really interested in talking with you. Polite and just plain fun is what Ottenweller is all about. However, when you then see Ottenweller on the golf course it is something different entirely. You do see a smile, but it is one of concentration and determination.
It is that type of personality that has helped U-M have one of its finest fall seasons in the history of the program.
After just missing a starting spot in the opening qualifier, Ottenweller has become one of the Wolverine mainstays in the starting lineup over the last four tournaments. He has performed and really shined setting and resetting career-best numbers with each tournament that passes. Most recently he tied for third overall at the Alister MacKenzie Invitational, with a career-best five-under 66 in the first round, followed with a career-best six-under 207 54-hole tournament total.
"It must be all that short game work I did," he would say laughing.
So far it has continued to work. With his infectious smile, he sat down for a little while to discuss the beginning of his second season and about the team's progress this fall.
On the difference from his freshman season to his sophomore season
"Everyone's probably going to say 'experience' when they're in my situation. That's definitely the key word that has helped me excel so far this year. Experience in the classroom, especially, because I really know how to handle my classes a lot better this semester. I sort of have a direction of where I'm going as far a majoring. Last year, I was kind of up in the air, juggling a lot of things and I didn't really know what was going on. Also on the golf course, I feel like I know the competition. I know the competition within the team as well as in the big ten and I feel like I've prepared myself this summer for a good season so that I have the opportunity to excel."
On the adjustment from high school to collegiate golf
"I would say it's just consistency. When you get into a high school golf tournament, a lot of times one kid could go out and shoot one round, 69 or 70, and win the tournament. Here, most guys that are good players are going to be consistent week in and week out and that's the difference between high school and college golf. What makes a good college golfer is not just showing up for one tournament but backing it up with a good tournament the next week, following a good fall with a great spring season and competing in every tournament. In high school golf you could have a guy that played well but doesn't beat for the rest of the year, but in college golf the good players are going to be near the top of the leader board every time."
On his thoughts about the team's successes in the fall season
"I would say Coach Sapp has prepared us pretty well for actually competing in tournaments. Last year, we stepped up to every tournament and said, yeah, we can try to win this' but I don't think anybody ever believed it. But after repeating that over and over and having guys coming off good summers, you sort of just have confidence in the guy next to you and you sort of believe that your team is going to be better. Coach Sapp's done a great job this year with changing things up. Last year, practice was just kind of the same thing, just hit balls, chip and putt. So far this year, we've done a team format. We had a Maize and Blue Cup and it just keeps us interested in the game. It keeps us competitive within ourselves and with each other and I think that leads to confidence and competitiveness when we step into a tournament."
On his thoughts on the internal team competition
"Two things First, our two freshmen are definitely competitive players. The other is Brandon (Duff) is back. He was injured last year, so getting him back has been huge. Brandon's a very solid player with a good golf swing. He's a good vocal leader and he definitely knows how to get people motivated. Will (Kendall) is back and he didn't have such a good year last year but he's really been competing this year. Just having those guys back is great. Last year, there was a top six maybe seven but this year, there are eight or nine guys that really want to compete for the starting lineup. I feel that is where we get our confidence and competitiveness. I think it's healthy to have this kind of competition. It tends to break people a little bit when they play well and can't make it into the tournament but it also makes them fight harder the next time. The first tournament this year, I didn't qualify. I played kind of poorly and then I shot a 67 to get into a playoff, had a bad playoff hole and lost to Bill (Rankin) and Will. I came back the next qualifying tournament, shot a 66 and put myself into position to get back into the top five. In between that time when I didn't qualify for the tournament and when I did, I feel like I really worked a lot harder. I knew I wanted to be in the top five and I didn't want to make this a one tournament fall where I'm inconsistent and just kind of up in the air. I definitely think not qualifying, even if you're playing well, can break somebody but it makes you come back harder the next time."
On his first three tournaments of the fall season
"I'm very pleased with my first three tournaments. If you would have told me I'd be three under par through nine rounds thus far this year, I'd take it right away. But also, it just feels good to play good golf. I had a pretty poor summer, I worked with a swing coach back in Grand Rapids where I'm from and I really feel like I have more confidence. I feel like I'm striking the ball a lot better. My putting and short game has been a lot better. I think you really have to hit the ball poorly in order to come back to be a great player because when you're heating the ball poorly, you work on your short game. Once your swing comes back, your short game's there as well and you can start to put more and more good rounds together. I think that's what I've done so far."
On the kind of golf game he plays
"I don't hit a lot of fairways and I wouldn't say I'm a long hitter. But I get a lot of practice playing out of the rough so I'm accustomed to that. I'm not a real consistent ball striker but I go out there and just hit the ball the best I can every time and for the next shot I go do the same. My motto is hit it and get it.' You've got to grind it out because no one is going to hit the ball well every time. As long as you're not hitting it out of bounds, which I have, it's fine. I've minimized huge mistakes like that and I don't think I've hit it out of bounds in a tournament yet but I know I did that a few times last year. I would say that I'm not terribly consistent but I find a way to score out there. I think that my greatest asset is being able to score no matter how I'm hitting it."
On if there is pressure to perform after being successful in the fall season
"I would say there is a little bit more pressure to perform individually. This year, I think there's a realistic chance that we should go to the regional and I feel like this team is capable of that. We've definitely increased our game and we feel like we need to beat nearly every team in the tournament in order to really win our district or be in the top six. That's definitely an added pressure."
On the winter break being a mental and physical break from the game
"I love the winter break. I've never lived down south and I don't know how they do it playing all year around. Tim (Schaetzel) is obviously accustomed to that. He knows how to do it because that's just kind of the way he's grown up and the way his mind works. I definitely need that break where I'm not playing competitive golf. I don't think I've ever played a tournament in the winter. When I was in high school, I just sort of hit balls every now and then, played other sports and tried to focus on other things to take my mind off golf. You feel much more refreshed when you come back in the spring and it's definitely a good break."
On whether or not the winter break will hinder the team
"I don't think so and I hope not. I really can't predict because it's my second year but last year, we had a poor fall and didn't really know what to expect in the spring. I don't how we're going to come back but I hope it's on the positive end and that we come back really solid. I'm sure everybody's going to be working hard over the winter. There's definitely a lot more motivation when you're competing at the national level. I think that's good enough to keep people working and to help us have a good spring."
Contact: Tom Wywrot (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
