Sizzling Start to Summer for CMU Golfer Arie Jackman

For golfers, it's about getting to that point. The zone, if you will. It's elusive, mysterious, and fleeting.

Arie Jackman, it would appear, is there.

Jackman, a Central Michigan senior-to-be and a member of the Chippewa golf team, won the prestigious Michigan Medal Play Championship last weekend at Detroit Golf Club, posting a 72-hole, 11-under 261 total.

He opened with a 2-over 70, then shot a 3-under 65, and closed with back-to-back 5-under 63's, his career best.

His performance came on the heels of a solid season with the first-year CMU men's program, and in the midst of a promising spring/summer that began with a 2-under 70 and a fourth-place finish in U.S. Open local qualifying two weeks ago.

That put Jackman into a June 5 sectional qualifier and one step from a spot in the U.S. Open, which begins on June 15 in Los Angeles.

"In the offseason," Jackman said, referring to the end of the Chippewas' fall schedule and the beginning of the spring, "coach (Kevin Jennings) and I had some really good conversations, really worked hard on the mental part of my game and also my consistency."

Jackman played in four of the Chippewas' five fall events, averaging 77.58. He started the spring portion of the schedule with a bang, shooting a 3-under 69 in his first event of calendar year 2023, the Sam Houston State Bearkat Invitational in Texas.

He averaged 74.83 – a precipitous improvement over his fall scores -- in four spring tournaments. He finished with a 2-under 214 in the 54-hole Bearkat.

"Texas was kind of a breakthrough for me," Jackman said. "I'd never shot under par for a three-round tournament before. After that I've just been playing with a lot more confidence.

"I feel like my ball striking has gotten better, but it hasn't been what's allowed me to shoot these low scores. It's just being able to make 10-20 (foot putts) on the regular; that's been helpful."

Jackman's immediate schedule is full, beginning with Michigan Open and West Michigan Amateur qualifiers in the coming days and the U.S. Open sectional.

If he fails to qualify for the U.S. Open, he will enter the Michigan Amateur, which begins on June 20 and is slated for venerable Oakland Hills Country Club.

Jackman, who stands 6-foot-7, hails from Caledonia, and works and practices at Egypt Valley Country Club near Grand Rapids, reached match play a year ago in his first stab at the Michigan Am.

A year in maroon and gold playing NCAA Division I competition has helped to raise Jackman's expectations.

"You get on the range and know that the guy next to you isn't any better than you are at hitting the golf ball," he said. "Everywhere we go we compare ourselves to other teams and compete against them and we kind of said all year we know that we can compete with anyone.

"It all just comes down to the mental part of the game. It's cool to be able to travel around and see all the different teams and compare yourself to them and compete with them.

"For me, that's been the big thing; it's knowing that I'm good enough and that comes from being in Mount Pleasant and working with (Jennings) in our lab and seeing results and making changes and figuring out what works best under pressure."

Players Mentioned

Arie Jackman

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