Fulton County Ohio Media

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There are only two basic ways to play a round of golf at the historic and tradition-rich Inverness Golf Club in Toledo.  You either pay a lot of money or you earn your way on to the nationally recognized course, site of several major PGA and LPGA Championships, with your golfing skills that have been developed and honed while competing against the toughest competition you can find.

For Mazin Rukieh, an incoming junior at Swanton High School, it was his talent and his impressive performances while competing in the Toledo Junior Golf Association (TJGA) this summer against many of the top high school golfers in the area that paved his way.  Mazin played in 11 tournaments on some of the best golf courses in Northwest Ohio this season and “made the cut” to qualify to play in the final tournament of the summer, the TJGA Founders Invitational held at Inverness this past Monday. 

Inverness is a “walk only” course so Mazin was allowed to bring along a caddie, choosing friend, classmate and fellow Swanton Bulldog golfer, Adam Lemon.  It was a perfect weather day, sunny and 78 degrees at tee-time.  However, playing for the first time on a course that saw the likes of so many greats of the game, names such as Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Ben Hogan and Byron Nelson, it had to be intimidating. 

Mazin teed off on the first hole of the front nine, paired with a player from Toledo Central Catholic and Anthony Wayne.  “I started out a little rough, but as I went on to the back nine, I finished strong with two birdies.  I had five birdies in total which is a pretty good amount for my usual rounds,” he explained.  “I did have a fair amount of bogeys so it was pretty aggressive.”

Inverness has a well-deserved reputation of being very challenging, rarely yielding scores below its par of 71.  “Some of the fairways are really hilly, up and down.  And the greens, from a distance, don’t look terrifying but once you get up there, you’re shaking,” said Mazin.  “I enjoyed the course overall.  It’s beautiful.  Probably the best I’ll ever play on.”

Competing in the TJGA this summer and finishing on the prestigious Inverness Golf Club will produce some major benefits for his golf game, admits Mazin.  “All these summer tournaments have really changed my game a lot and how I look at a golf course.  I have two strategies now.  It’s been really good for me,” he said. 

On the day, which he will never forget, Mazin shot a 79 for +8 over par, good for 7^th place among the 26 golfers in the boys 16-18 age group.  The winner of the tournament finished at +1 and second place came in at +5, in a testament to the difficulty of the course.  If these scores do not seem too impressive, keep in mind that in the 1957 US Open, a young Jack Nicklaus shot back-to-back rounds of 80 and missed the cut. 

There will be little time to rest for Mazin as he and the Swanton Bulldogs begin the high school season this Friday at an 18-team tournament at Stone Ridge Golf Club in Bowling Green.  The Bulldogs will start their home season at Valleywood Golf Club on Monday with a 3:00 PM match against the Otsego Knights followed by a Tuesday 1:00 PM match against the North Central Eagles.  On Wednesday, they host the Bulldog Invitational with an 8:00 AM tee-off.  They finish off the week by traveling to the Auglaize Golf Club for another 18-team tournament.

Click on the link above to access photos from the tournament.

Photo: Mazin Rukieh and Adam Lemon