Ziehm: Kelly, Cooke prepare for Illinois title defenses
Wheaton's Tee-K Kelly and Bolingbrook's David Cooke, coming off solid senior seasons as college players, will be in the spotlight at the height of Chicago golf season later this month.
Kelly, who was medalist at an NCAA regional for Ohio State, will defend his title at the Illinois State Amateur at St. Charles Country Club from July 19-21. Cooke, who shot a course record round of 62 - which included a hole-in-one - to spur North Carolina State to victory in its own tournament, defends the following week in the Illinois Open at Royal Fox and Royal Hawk in St. Charles.
Their title defenses will come in the midst of 10 straight days of tournament activity here. The Illinois Women's Open begins on July 18, a day before the Illinois State Amateur tees off. The Amateur overlaps by a day with the biggest event of the season - the LPGA's UL International Crown at Merit Club in Libertyville. The Open begins on July 25.
Kelly and Cooke were partners for the Chicago District Golf Association's amateur team in last month's Radix Cup matches against the Illinois PGA's top players and they salvaged a point against one of the section's strongest pairings - White Eagle's Curtis Malm and Medinah's Travis Johns.
Neither Kelly nor Cooke is quite ready to join the pro ranks yet, however.
Both are spending the summer playing in the top amateur events around the country while toying with the idea of turning pro. Cooke will do it, the question is just when. Kelly plans to play in the PGA Tour's fall qualifying tournament as an amateur before making a decision.
First order of business for Kelly is to win the State Amateur for the third time in four years. The 85-year old tourney has had only two 3-time winners since it went to a stroke play format in 1963 and both of those winners - Bob Zender and D.A. Points - became PGA Tour regulars. Kelly wants to join them in the State Am record books.
"That's my goal," said Kelly. "It would put me in some more elite company. If I could do that it would be awesome."
Cooke could make his pro debut at the Illinois Open. It all hinges on how he performs in next Tuesday's U.S. Amateur qualifying round at the Weibring course on the Illinois State campus in Normal.
"I would love to play in the Illinois Open as a pro but I wouldn't want to pass up my last chance to play in the U.S. Amateur either," said Cooke, who made the match play portion of last year's U.S. Amateur at Olympia Fields. "If I don't make the U.S. Am, I'll turn pro for the State Open."
Illinois Open field is set
The Illinois PGA conducted seven statewide qualifying rounds for the Illinois Open and the last one drew the most interesting qualifiers.
Mistwood director of golf Andy Mickelson, the reigning PGA Assistants national champion, shared medalist honors with New Lenox amateur Gabriel Aprati. Both shot 4-under-par 68s and Carlos Sainz Jr., a PGA Tour member last season, tied for fourth, 2 strokes back.
They'll be among the 358 finalists at Royal Fox and Royal Hawk, but their qualifying scores were easily eclipsed at other eliminations. Christian Heavens, a pro from Fairview Heights near St. Louis, had the low qualifying score at 8-under-par 64 at Effingham Country Club. Heavens is a nephew of Jerome Heavens, the fifth all-time leading rusher in Notre Dame history and a 1979 Bears' draftee.
Two amateurs weren't far behind Heavens. Jonathan Hudson of Western Springs and John Wright of Aurora shot 65s to lead the elimination at Maple Meadows in Addison.
Here and there
Barrington's Heather Ciskowski earned a berth in the U.S. Women's Amateur through a sectional qualifier in Minnesota and South Elgin's Megan Furtney was first alternate there. The Chicago qualifier is Wednesday (TODAY) at Sportsman's, in Northbrook.
Lake Bluff's Andrew Price became the first mid-amateur (25 and older) to win the 97th CDGA Amateur since 2009 when he took a 4-3 victory over Todd Mitchell of Bloomington at Calumet Country Club. The tourney usually favors college players but this time nine of the 16 match play qualifiers were from the mid-am ranks.
Lake Shore's Bob Koschmann and Itasca's Phil Benson will be the honorees at the Illinois PGA Senior Masters event July 18 at Onwentsia, in Lake Forest.
The Ovarian Cancer Symptom Awareness Organization will hold its fourth annual outing on July 18 at Boulder Ridge in Lake in the Hills.
Former Illinois PGA teacher of the year Rick Sellers has been selected to join The Golf Channel Academy.
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