Top PGA Pro Finish Latest Greatest Highlight as Cook Continues Climb
By
Dean Holzwarth
Special for MHSAA.com
July 19, 2021
GRAND RAPIDS – Ben Cook grew up rooting for PGA Tour star Phil Mickelson.
This past May 23, the former Grand Rapids South Christian High School standout received the thrill of a lifetime when he posed for pictures beside his childhood idol following the PGA Championship.
Cook, 27, was the low PGA Professional, while Mickelson became the oldest golfer to win a major after a two-stroke win at the Kiawah Island Golf Resort in South Carolina.
“I’ve always been a big Phil fan, my whole life growing up,” the 27-year-old Caledonia resident said. “And then it just happened to be him that won and I got to stand next to him, which was very special.
“I was like, I’m totally part of history right now and this is crazy. The oldest guy to ever win a major, and it being Phil. It was really cool.”
Cook earned the Crystal Ball as the low PGA Professional after finishing the tournament in a tie for 44th at +4.
He made the cut for the first time in his third appearance at the PGA Championship.
“I definitely can tell that playing on the weekend is a lot different than watching on the weekend from years past,” Cook said. “Once I made the cut, it felt like a huge weight lifted, and at that point I was like I have to go after every pin and try to make as many birdies as I can.”
Cook played with Webb Simpson in both weekend rounds and shot a 3-under 69 on Saturday.
“Overall, I played really good,” Cook said. “I was under par on the weekend, so I was happy about that.”
Cook turned some heads with his performance and received unwavering support from family, friends and the West Michigan community.
“It was quite the experience,” Cook said. “The support I got, and all the random text messages and people who came to the event. Just so many people wishing me good luck and prayers. It was overwhelming.
“I would get done with a round and have 100 text messages and almost 200 messages on Instagram. All these people saying, ‘good job’ and ‘we’re thinking about you,’ it was quite the feeling and very cool for sure.”
Cook was one of the state’s top high school golfers under late coach Rod VanDyke, who died in 2014. As a junior, he helped the Sailors to a runner-up finish at the 2011 MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 3 Final with a 10th-place individual performance.
South Christian finished among the top 10 again Cook’s senior year, this time in Division 2, as he placed sixth individually.
“I had a very influential and memorable golf coach in Rod VanDyke,” Cook said. “He made everything super light and was always hilarious.”
Cook played collegiately at Ferris State University and led the Bulldogs to the Division II National Quarterfinals his senior year. He was a two-time Player of the Year in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and twice earned All-America recognition.
“I just wanted to make the lineup as a freshman and travel, and I was really fortunate to play really well in qualifying,” Cook said. “That allowed me to play in every match that I was eligible to play in, and I never missed an event through my five years there.
“It was amazing to travel around the country and play in golf tournaments. The friends that I made playing golf at Ferris I still hang out with today. They are like my closest buddies.”
Cook graduated with a professional golf management degree, which granted him the opportunity to play in PGA sectional tournaments.
He played in his first PGA Championship in 2019 at Bethpage Black and missed the cut by three shots.
“After my senior year I knew I was going to try and play professionally,” Cook said. “I got a job that allowed me to work on my game and play as much as I can while still working to play the bills.”
Cook has four professional victories on his resume, including the 2020 Michigan PGA Championship.
He is currently the director of instruction at Yankee Springs Golf Course in Wayland.
“Teaching and coaching is a lot of fun,” Cook said. “Just being able to help people get better and seeing how excited they get when they finally start to get it and they hit it good. That’s what makes it fun for me, and I get the whole spectrum.
“I teach kids who are 5 to parents who are over 70. From the college player to the beginner. I get a variety, and that makes it fun and keeps you on your toes.”
Cook has status on the Latin America tour, and is currently 20th on that points list. He travels to Mexico next week, and will lock up a Korn Ferry Tour card with a win or runner-up finish. The Korn Ferry Tour is the developmental tour that feeds into the PGA Tour.
He intends to head to PGA Qualifying School in the fall if he doesn’t get a card.
2020-21 Made in Michigan
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PHOTOS: (Top) Grand Rapids’ Ben Cook reads a putt during the 2020 Michigan PGA Professional Championship, which he won. (Middle) Cook watches one of his drives at Katke Golf Course during the 2012 LP Division 2 Final. (Top photo by Greg Johnson/Michigan PGA. Middle photo by High School Sports Scene.)
Pipkorn Emerges with Season-Best Score to Lead North Central's Repeat Run
By
Jason Juno
Special for MHSAA.com
May 28, 2025
ESCANABA — Powers North Central’s Nathan Pipkorn hadn’t shot in the 70s all season, and he was golfing with the No. 3s at Wednesday’s Upper Peninsula Division 3 Boys Golf Final.
He was the No. 1 by the end of the day.
Pipkorn beat his previous season best by six strokes and became the champion by carding a 76 at Escanaba Country Club. He finished ahead of freshman runner-up Christian VanDamme of Rock Mid Peninsula by five strokes.
“I really, really picked it up today and got it done,” Pipkorn said. “My chipping and putting was absolutely phenomenal today. I two or one-putt just about everything, and I went up and down all the time.”
Pipkorn also led the Jets to a second consecutive team championship, their third in the last four seasons. Lake Linden-Hubbell finished runner-up.
“That’s the one that matters the most,” Pipkorn said. “I’m glad we got it done.”
The sophomore was the first Jet to win a U.P. Finals title since Bryson Mercier won his third straight in 2022.
“I definitely didn’t expect it,” Pipkorn said. “I’m usually not in this type of situation. But I’m very excited.”
The day didn’t start well. He bogeyed the first three holes.
“But after that I really picked it up,” he said.
The sophomore thought he was probably in the hunt after finishing even on the front nine.
“It was when I saw the second-place guy bogey about four holes in a row,” he said. “Then I knew.”
They weren’t golfing together because Pipkorn was back with the 3s. Golfers keep score on their phones these days, and a side benefit is seeing where you stack up against the rest of the competition.
“He can score,” North Central coach Zeke Strand said. “When he’s playing well, he keeps the golf course in front of him. Chipping and putting, getting up and down, he’s a gamer, that kind of thing, too.”
It was a great day all the way around for the Jets, who added to their extensive MHSAA trophy collection. Besides their recent golf success, North Central has won five Finals titles since 8-player football started in 2011, and three straight Class D boys basketball titles from 2015-17, a stretch during which they never lost a game.
Strand was just worried about keeping their success on the golf course going.
“It’s my first year coaching golf, so our previous golf coach said I got to get it again,” Strand said. “We did. We played well, and we earned it. It feels great.”
The Jets’ Alex Pipkorn also finished among the top five. He and Lake Linden-Hubbell’s Tyler Axford both carded 82s to tie for third. Big Bay de Noc’s Parker Pederson finished with an 84 to round out the top five.
PHOTOS (Top) Power North Central's Nathan Pipkorn tees off Wednesday at Escanaba Country Club. (Middle) Mid Peninsula's Christian VanDamme chips toward the green during his Finals round. (Photos by Jason Juno.)