Schaumburg Golf Club all-stars storm into a national final
Some of us will never forget the rains of Sept. 20.
While we Riot Fest goers churned Chicago’s Douglass Park into a mud pudding, a group of high school golfers rocked Mundelein’s Countryside Golf Club in the slop.
“It was horrible, horrible,” said one of them, Conant High School junior Madeline Gutierrez.
But the results were wonderful.
Rather than add more layers at the PGA Junior League Regional in Mundelein, the eight players on the Schaumburg Golf Club 17-Under Junior PGA team said, what the heck.
They removed the waterlogged rain gear that stifled their swings, got down to short sleeves, and beat the defending Junior PGA national champions from Cog Hill.
Right now the Schaumburg all-stars are in Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico, playing for the national title.
“I’ve worked with kids my whole life. I’ve never been so proud,” said Schaumburg Golf Club Junior PGA coach Keith Donovan.
His team consists of the Conant trio of Gutierrez and sophomores Leo Enomoto and Nutdanai Patrick Kittivat, Fremd senior Alia Brazeau, Hersey junior Michael Szabo, Barrington sophomore Niyam Upadhyay, St. Viator sophomore Oscar Marzec, and Lake Park sophomore Arjav Shah.
After today’s scheduled practice round at Twin Warriors Golf Club, Friday and Saturday are two-person scrambles. Out of 12 national qualifiers, the four teams with the best aggregate scores advance to Sunday’s final match play.
“I think we’re just going there to do our best. It’s our first year, we have no expectations, we’ll just enjoy ourselves and see how it goes,” Gutierrez said.
“It’s definitely a new experience. I’ve never been to a tournament this far away, and this huge of a tournament — nationals, against the best teams across the country,” she said.
Still, just this summer Gutierrez at 16 became one of the youngest winners of the Illinois Women’s Open. Earlier this month she and Brazeau tied for eighth-place in the Illinois High School Association girls Class 2A finals.
Szabo played on the Hersey boys team that finished second to Evanston at the Class 3A finals. Marzec tied for 26th place individually in Class 2A for St. Viator, which placed fifth as a team.
These young golfers have played with and against each other for years.
“We all like each other, and that kind of led to this all-star team,” Szabo said.
“Obviously the end goal is to win, so we’re just going to go out there, have fun and play some team golf.”
The forecast this weekend for Santa Ana Pueblo indicates storms and showers. That’s Team Illinois weather.
The Ultimate location
Frisbees again will fly at Elmhurst University’s Langhorst Field next spring and summer, when the Chicago Union professional ultimate Frisbee franchise returns in 2027.
C.J. O’Brien, the Batavia High School graduate and West Chicago resident who is majority owner of the Chicago Union, said the Ultimate Frisbee Association entry will return to Langhorst where it played from 2019-21.
Unlike a clean pass in the fast-paced sport, the Union has bounced around since Chicago joined the UFA in 2013.
Most recently playing at Evanston High School, the Union played several seasons at Lane Tech High School in Chicago, at Benedictine University in Lisle, at North Central College in Naperville and at De La Salle High in Chicago.
The Union, which last season rostered players from towns including Algonquin, Downers Grove and Naperville, played at Northwestern’s Martin Stadium in 2024 and 2025 but this year got bumped by the Chicago Stars of the National Women’s Soccer League.
Incidentally, the Union is holding tryouts Nov. 7 at Montrose Park in Chicago for anyone interested.
The franchise initially left Langhorst Field due to stadium renovations there, O’Brien said. Both the Union and the university settled on the 2027 season as a trial run, but O’Brien said there may be interest in a multiyear partnership.
“I think there’s going to be really great things going on at Elmhurst, and we’re excited to be back,” he said.
doberhelman@dailyherald.com