By John Raffel
Correspondent
MATTAWAN – Matt Novak enjoyed his senior golf season for Mattawan High School.
“It went great,” he said. “It was a good season, a fun golf season. Fortunately the team didn’t qualify for state but it was fun. Highlights of the team included beating our rival Portage Central. We got them at a couple of tournaments and that was exciting.”
His average for 18 holes was 73 which was about the same as a year ago. His lowest 18-hole score was 68 at Bedford Valley during a regular-season tournament.
“It came down to making putts, and getting it close to the hole,” Novak said, adding his strength was, “my driver and being consistent off the tee and putting it in good spots. My long game is an important part of my game.”
Novak qualified for the state tournament as an individual and had played there the last three years.
“I placed ninth as a sophomore, then fourth and then third,” he said.
“Matt Novak was all-conference and all-state for the third year in a row,” coach Troy Pelak said. “He led our team this year with an 18-hole scoring average of 72.7. He also finished in the top 10 in both the regionals and state finals for the third year in a row. Matt’s key highlights for the year
included a -4 under par 68 at the Bedford Valley open in a field of state ranked teams. He also shot a -2 under 70 in his final round at the state tournament to finish third overall as an individual.”
Novak also played Mattawan hockey for two seasons as a sophomore and junior.
“Growngup my favorite sport was hockey,” Novak said. “When I saw I had a future in golf, I started to pursue that.”
He will be playing the sport at the University of Denver. “I wanted to play for a coach I believe in and would push me to be the best I possibly can,” Novak said.
