Crown Point’s Nick Grubnich named Golfer of the Year

Updated: July 21, 2011 1:20PM

Nick Grubnich may never be happy with his final two rounds of high school golf. He finished fifth in the state with rounds of 71 and 72 at Legends Golf Club in Franklin.

In reality, the fifth-place finish put an outstanding cap on an extraordinary high school career for Grubnich at Crown Point.

“I still feel like I left a lot out there,” said Grubnich, the Post-Tribune’s boys golf Player of the Year.

It was the second straight year Grubnich finished fifth at the state tournament. With a third-place finish as a freshman, he finished in the top five in the state three of his four high school seasons. As a sophomore, he qualified for state but missed the cut.

“It sunk in a little bit the last few days as I looked back at it,” Grubnich said. “I thought I had some pretty good years. I wouldn’t replace it for the world. It was a great experience playing for the team. You represent your school and your town. It’s five guys playing as one.”

Grubnich was nearly unbeatable this season. Aside from the state tournament, he won all other tournaments and invitationals in which he competed.

“That felt pretty good,” Grubnich said. “I stayed consistent. Even in my bad rounds I managed to shoot something decent.”

And that’s where Grubnich showed his biggest signs of improvement this season. He said he scuffled at times at the state tournament, but he still finished with a 1-under par for 36 holes in less-than-ideal playing conditions.

Even though his best state finish came as a freshman, Grubnich laughs when he thinks of how far he his game as come in four years.

“I remember looking at some of the scores I shot my freshman year,” Grubnich said. “That would be awful for me now. I just gained a lot of experience. My game got a lot better. Those four years were definitely big stepping stones.”

And they went by fast.

“It seemed like it just flew by,” Grubnich said. “I remember my freshman year like it was just recently. Four years went by really quick.”

Now, the next level awaits as he fine-tunes his game this summer at various tournaments around the country. Grubnich will continue his career at Indiana University. And he admits to having some jitters about it.

“Yeah, I’m kind of nervous,” Grubnich said. “I don’t know what to expect. Instead of being the man to beat all the time, I’m just going to be another one of those guys out there next year. It’s going to be a lot different.”

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