Giants' Gerrard stands tall in regional

Highland Park's Jonathan Gerrard putts on the 11th green.
(Thomas Delany Jr./News-Sun)

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GURNEE -- Forgive Highland Park's Jonathan Gerrard if he isn't current on the top prep golfers in the area.

He's only a freshman and didn't know that his foursome in the Class 3A Gurnee Regional at Bittersweet Golf Club on Tuesday of Lake Forest's Peter Marshall, Deerfield's Bennett Lavin and Carmel's Jack Watson is among the who's who in prep golf in Lake County.

"I didn't really play with anyone big," he said.

For Gerrard it didn't matter who is playing partners were, only that his job was to beat them.

And beat them he did, as Gerrard fired a 2-over-par 74 and then knocked off Lake Forest sophomore Perry Johnson in a one-hole playoff to earn medalist honors in the regional.

Lavin (76), Watson (76) and Marshall (78) all finished in the top five individually at Bittersweet, but it was lefty Gerrard who came out on top.

"I drove the ball well, keeping it in the fairway, and I putted pretty good," said Gerrard.

Gerrard's performance in his first regional appearance didn't surprise Highland Park coach Paul Harris .

"Even though he's only a freshman, Jon is already tournament tested from his play for us this season and his play over the summer," he said. "He has a love for the game that is probably the strongest I've seen in a player in my 14 years of coaching."

Gerrard's play helped the Giants finish second in the team competition with a 325 total, seven strokes behind winner Lake Forest (318). Carmel edged Mundelein 328-329 for the third and final qualifying spot for next Monday's Barrington Sectional.

For the Scouts, it was their fifth-straight regional championship.

"After the first nine scores came in for us, it didn't look good," said Lake Forest coach Jim Matheson. "We only had one score in the 30s. But to our guys' credit, they bounced back and played well. They knew on this course that anything could happen to anyone at anytime, so they kept at it."

Johnson was one of those players who improved on the back nine as he fired an even-par 36.

"Perry hasn't played on varsity the whole season, but every time he has, he has counted for us, so we knew he could help us (on Tuesday)," said Matheson.

The only trouble Johnson faced on the day was in the playoff with Gerrard when he hit his approach shot on the par-4 16th hole into the bunker. After his first sand shot stayed in the bunker, he flew the next shot over the green and took a triple-bogey.

Gerrard also hit over the green and then fluffed a chip shot, but he was able to drain a 15-foot putt for a bogey to win the playoff.

"It felt good to win, but the main thing was that our team was able to qualify (for the sectional)," he said.