Nick Schaefer storms to men's medalist honor, seeks 3rd Birchmont championship
Jul. 25—BEMIDJI — A confident golfer on the tee box is a scary sight for their Birchmont Golf Tournament adversaries.
Nick Schaefer's confidence earned him the medalist honor in the men's championship field. His 6-under-par round of 66 led all golfers on Tuesday, giving him a two-day score of 136 after his 2-under-par round on Monday.
"I'm hitting it pretty straight off the tee," Schaefer said. "My putter was really good today. I probably got fortunate in the first four holes, and then I kind of turned it on on the back nine. When you start feeling it a little bit, you feel like you can birdie every hole. Obviously, that's the goal. I got away with a couple of shots I probably shouldn't have, but it worked out."
Schaefer, a Grand Forks, N.D., native, was dialed in from his first shot on Tuesday at the Bemidji Town and Country Club. He eagled the fourth hole and birdied twice more before the turn. Schaefer then birdied three consecutive holes on the back nine before making par on Nos. 17 and 18.
This year marks two decades since Schaefer first entered the Birchmont. He won the men's championship in 2015 and 2018 and is looking for a third this week.
"I think this is year 20," Schaefer said. "I've been coming here since I was 13, and I'm 33 now. My whole family comes out here for it. I have my daughter and my wife with me this week. We just enjoy the week, the lake time and playing some golf. It's my favorite week of the year. No other week is comparable."
Jon DuToit finished second among the qualifiers with a two-day score of 138. Ian Simonich and Adam Van Raden tied for third at 5-under-par. Cody Cook and Rylin Petry tied for fifth (140), while Gregg Matthew and Landon Miller tied for seventh (140).
"The tournament starts (on Wednesday)," Schaefer said. "Obviously, I want to be the medalist. It's a goal coming (into The Birchmont). I played well, but there are a ton of good golfers out there. We'll see what happens.
"I don't think I'm going to change a whole lot mentally. I like my driver off the tee. My driver has been pretty good so far. I think you hope to put pressure on your opponent and go from there."
Men's match play kicks off at 12:15 p.m. on Wednesday, July 26, from the first tee.
For the first time in four years, Emily Israelson entered the women's qualifying round without the title of reigning champion. Though, her effort to reclaim her title is off to a promising start.
Isrealson finished 3-over-par to claim the top spot on Tuesday morning. Morgan Hetletved was hot on her tail, finishing a stroke behind in second place. Anna Tollette and Lily Bredemeier each carded scores of 80 at 8-over-par.
Rounding out the top five was Carrie Lundgren, who finished 10-over-par. Defending champion Abbie Kelm played despite an automatic entry into the championship bracket. She finished her first round of the week with an 85.
Women's championship match play begins at 8:12 a.m. on the first hole on Wednesday.
Another former Birchmont champion is in a good position to double up on titles. Troy Johnson's consistent qualifying matches netted him the top spot in the men's executive field. The 2021 executive champion shot back-to-back rounds of 71, clearing second place by four strokes.
Jeff Thompson opted out of the qualifying rounds as the defending executive champion. Mark Hylden was the next closest to Johnson at 2-over-par. Nathan Brewinski tied with Johnson for the second-best round of the morning, finishing with a 1-under-par 71 and a two-day total of 148. Joe Burgess and Jason Kujanson each finished 6-over-par to tie for fourth place.
The men's executives begin match play at 8:48 a.m. on the first hole on Wednesday.
Dale Finck was the only senior player to shoot under par in any qualifying round. His two-day score of 146 was four strokes better than Rick Passolt. Finck's Tuesday score of 71 brought him down to 2-over-par and the best qualifying finish.
Passolt's 6-over score of 150 was good enough for second place. Scott Hinners (151), Jeff Slupe (153) and Curt Howard (154) rounded out the top five finishers. Defending champion Jeff Wiltse played in only the second of the two qualifying rounds, finishing with a 3-over-par 75.
The senior players begin match play at 7:36 a.m. on Wednesday from the first hole.
The eldest group of golfers hit the links for the first time this week on Tuesday. After 18 holes, Rick Vanyo earned the top spot. He shot a 3-over-par 75, beating Douglas Taylor by one stroke. Steve Herzog finished in third place at 5-over-par.
Don Dale and Dave Fox tied for fourth with scores of 78. Jack Seiberlich finished sixth (79), while Wayne Caughey and Bruce Pederson tied for seventh (80).
Masters players start match play at 1:35 p.m. on Wednesday from the first hole.
The first rounds of match play began on Tuesday night in the junior 10-12 division. Top-seeded Jackson Fogelson of Bemidji beat Byrton Kuenzel 5-and-4. He will face off against Bemidji's Axel Burlingame, who knocked off Owen Grand 4-and-3.
Second-seeded Caden Boschee beat Rory Rivard 3-and-2, while Logan Brink upset third-seeded Brayson Boschee 2-and-1.
The junior 10-12 players will resume match play on Thursday, July 27.
For complete results and Wednesday tee times, visit thebirchmont.com. Weeklong Birchmont coverage can be found at
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* Monday: Qualifying rounds for the men's, men's senior, men's executive and junior divisions.
* Tuesday: Qualifying rounds for the women's and masters divisions; second round of qualifying for men's, men's senior and men's executive divisions; match play begins for junior 10-12 division.
* Wednesday: Match play begins for all championship divisions. (Men's letter flights, men's executive regular and junior 10-12 divisions do not play.)
* Thursday: Match play continues for all championship divisions. (Women's regular, masters regular and junior flights do not play.)
* Friday: Match play continues for all divisions. (Junior champ and first flights do not play.)
* Saturday: Match play finals for all divisions.
