Hartland's Rohrhoff Inspires with Golf Success as She Aspires to Encourage Others
By
Tom Lang
Special for MHSAA.com
October 27, 2026
Payton Rohrhoff showed up early in life, being born 10 weeks earlier than doctors expected.
She’s not sure if her premature birth led to her cerebral palsy, but her life-long physical condition certainly did not keep her from showing up early in junior golf as well. And the Hartland junior has continued to handle her challenges very well on and off the golf course, notably tying for eighth at the Oct. 16-17 Lower Peninsula Division 1 Golf Final.
Cerebral palsy has caused Rohrhoff’s right leg to be shorter and retain less muscle mass than her left leg – which makes it more difficult for a right-handed golfer to push off with her right side to create maximum power.
Yet, the high school junior has held Hartland’s No. 1 position since she joined the girls golf program as a freshman. Another highlight this season was setting a 9-hole school record with a 34 at Dunham Hills in her team’s dual with Brighton. The previous record was 36.
“Coach told me at the beginning of the season what I had to do to break the school record, so it was always in my head at points,” Rohrhoff said. “Getting that school record and doing it by two shots, that happened because I stayed present on each shot. Other times I tried I was probably thinking too far ahead.”
More importantly, Rohrhoff leads not just her team – but highly influences others in the sport and in life – by showing how a difficult physical condition should never stop someone from being kind, brave, enduring and a hard worker.
“I had lots of players, but also a coach come up to me a few times this season to say she thought I was such an inspiration to her and said to keep working hard and keep going,” Rohrhoff said. “Something like that is really important to me, because I really do want to make an impact on other people’s lives.”
Her limp is visible as she walks with an unusual gait that might make it look like she’s in constant pain – but those who watch her compete also experience her genuinely kind spirit, great golf skills and knowledge, her maturity, Christian faith and her bubbling personality (to name just a few positives).
Perhaps a fellow competitor and now great friend, all-state golfer Cam Baker from three-time state champion Northville (who tied for 11th individually at the LPD1 Final), said it best:
“My first time playing with Payton was three years ago in the GAM Jr. Stroke play event,” Baker shared. “Her positive attitude, half-glass full personality was contagious. Not only was she an awesome golfer, but she loved the game, and it showed through that entire day.
“I have learned so much watching her play and spending time with her. She has taught me to always smile and to never take things for granted. She is constantly working on getting better and stronger. Payton is the true definition of a go-getter that doesn’t let anything stop her from achieving her dreams.”
Other Rohrhoff highlights from 2026 have included:
- Winning the Regional with a 72 at Michigan State’s Forest Akers East, tying the 18-hole school record.
- Tying for third in the Kensington Lakes Activities Association all-conference standings with a preseason and postseason total of 76-74-150.
- Moving up from 24th in 2025 to that tie for eighth at the LPD1 Final, where her 36-hole score of 155 was the school’s best ever at a Final by 10 shots.
- Winning over the summer her fourth-consecutive Women’s Member Championship at Forest Dunes – which included a hole-in-one on The Loop’s 5th hole.
- Being interviewed on Golf Channel about cerebral palsy when she attended the Folds of Honor Collegiate at American Dunes.
Payton said she’s had at least two surgeries to help with functions hindered by the cerebral palsy. She also wears a 1-inch heel lift in her right shoe.
“The one (surgery) I had when I was 4 years old was pretty small (in scope), but then I grew a bunch so they had to do it again (at age 12), but it was a lot more complicated,” she described. “It was a heel cord lengthening, an extension, because I used to walk straight up on my toe. So, they got me more flat-footed.
“Cerebral palsy is in your brain. You’re born with it. A lot of people are in wheelchairs, or it affects half their body. With some people it affects both their legs. A lot of people, it’s one leg and one arm. For me it’s just my right leg.”
Rohrhoff has never been wheelchair-bound but didn’t walk until she was almost 2 years old.
“My balance on my left leg is definitely better, and my right calf has always been smaller since I had surgery in sixth grade, but I’m going to a strength trainer, and I think that’s helped both sides,” she added. “But I definitely use my left side more than my right.”
Rohrhoff said while other sports she tried didn’t work out, she can walk the golf course with anyone and could do 36 holes in one day if needed. That isn’t typical until college golf, which she would like to play one day.
Hartland coach Ethan Hawker agrees Rohrhoff can reach any goal she pursues.
“She’s an amazing golfer, for any coach,” he said. “She’s a dream. She loves the game. She puts in the time. She’s the kind of teammate that any coach would want. Team culture is a big deal for Hartland. We want to win, don’t get me wrong. But having a group of girls that support each other, that’s what it’s all about.
“Payton defines that every day. She has from the very beginning. She’s the kind of leader I want, and she’s really good at golf.”
Due to lessened power generated from her right side, “I don’t hit it crazy far,” Rohrhoff said. “I have worked a ton on hitting it further (with a strength coach), but I definitely could work more on that, especially before I go into college.”
Rohrhoff said at this point her short game is her strength. Hawker also noted her high golf IQ, and that’s of course a major plus as well.
Rohrhoff’s biggest support system is her parents and her younger sister Morgan, who also plays on the Hartland golf team. They’ve been integral in supporting Payton every step of the way.
Rohrhoff doesn’t appear to worry about what others think of her physical challenges. In fact, most of the time she feels only support from other teenagers, in the same way she wants to be an encouragement to others.
“I’ve made so many friends through golf,” she said. “I’ve met my best friend through this sport. There’s so many great people always there to support me and encourage me to do my best.”
Likewise, she doesn’t hear many whispers from inquisitive others who notice her limp during play.
“But I think my parents hear more of the questions than I do,” she said. “I think other people’s parents ask. Some girls ask me directly, but I think it’s more the parents that notice than the athletes do.
“I just want to use it as something to help me to do what I can to encourage other people. Before, I tried to hide it, but now I think I can definitely encourage people and help them keep working to do their best, no matter what. That started the most when I got to high school. That really showed me that this sport is for me.”
Cam Baker’s father, Casey Baker, quickly observed how Payton positively affects young people like his daughter.
“I immediately noticed her positive attitude and infectious smile,” he said about the first time Rohrhoff played in a match with Cam. “Even after bad shots, she would just brush them off and not let it affect her.
"My daughter has become good friends with Payton, and she’s been such a positive influence. If Payton can go through life not complaining and just dealing with what she does, then what does Cam have to complain about? Payton is such a uniquely positive influence on my daughter and so many other young women."
PHOTOS (Top) Hartland’s Payton Rohrhoff tees off during high school competition. (Middle) Rohrhoff stands next to her bag for a photo. (Below) Rohrhoff watches a putt on its way to the hole. (Action shots by Dan Zeppa. Posed shot courtesy of MI Golf Journal.)
Multi-Sport Career at TC West Helps Gillis Thrive as Pro in Game She Once Left Behind
By
Tom Spencer
Special for MHSAA.com
July 9, 2026
When Gaby (Muller) Gillis walked away from golf her sophomore at Traverse City West High School, she had no idea she would sprint back to the sport.
Especially since her walk quickly turned to a stumble thanks to a torn ACL suffered during basketball practice a few months after giving up the fairway.
“I think everything happens for a reason,” said Gillis, a three-sport star at West and now the first female head golf pro at the John’s Island Club in Vero Beach, Fla. “It’s a silver lining — it’s what got me back into golf. A few months after my surgery, all I could do was chip and put. I had to try to do something.”
When Gillis was a freshman in high school, girls golf was a spring sport, girls volleyball was a winter sport and girls basketball was a fall sport. Girls golf and volleyball became fall sports her sophomore year. After consultation with her coaches and her parents, Gillis chose volleyball, then her favorite sport, over golf.
Gillis did play golf and volleyball in the same season her junior and senior years, balancing academics and competing in two sports simultaneously. She practiced golf mostly on her own, following volleyball team practices.
“I wouldn't change anything,” Gillis said. “School was important to me as well, but I was very lucky with the opportunities that I had. Those fall seasons, junior and senior year were pretty hectic. I had a lot of support from the coaches and my teammates.”
After leaving West, Gillis went on to play golf for Michigan State University and become a golf pro. Before her ACL injury, she was seriously entertaining thoughts of playing volleyball at the next level.
“A lot of the elite athletes were playing club throughout high school, and I just couldn't do that because I was playing my other sports,” Gillis recalled. “So could that have affected maybe my volleyball career? I don't know if volleyball would have taken me to where I am now.”
Gillis, who credits much of her success to her parents encouraging her to play multiple sports, points to high school athletics as key to functioning as a golf pro today and managing two golf courses and a staff of 30. She is one of two head golf pros at John’s Island. The other is her husband, Tim Gillis.
“High school sports taught me a ton,” Gillis acknowledged. “High school sports teaches kids discipline, time management and how to work with others. When you're on a team and also for individual sports, you learn how to handle things and experience the highs and lows and trying to figure something out on your own.”
She recommends today’s student-athlete avoid focusing on just one sport.
“I do a lot of recruiting and hiring in my job now,” she added. “I ask them about their golf experience but I also ask if they grew up playing any other sports. I think high school sports can teach someone so much. A lot of the people that I hire have played high school sports.”
Gillis graduated from West in 2010. She was an all-state golfer for the Titans and selected to the all-Big North Conference first teams in basketball, volleyball and golf. During her junior year, she eagled two holes during the same round.
She went on to play for Big Ten championship teams at MSU. Her younger brother, Gage, joined her at Michigan State and played for the Spartans, too.
“I grew up a very passionate Michigan State fan and had the opportunity to play golf there,” Gillis said. “Even though golf is an individual sport, it still had that team aspect at the college level and I'm still extremely close with some of my teammates. Golf added the family aspect, which I think is so important.”
Gillis has been around golf much of her life. Her father, Fred Muller, was the head golf professional at Crystal Downs Country Club in Frankfort for 42 years. He died a little over a year ago. Gillis recalls vividly playing at Crystal Down as young as 5 years of age,
Gillis pointed out she couldn’t imagine doing any other kind of work today.
“Growing up, I watched my dad work at the golf course, caddying, working in the bathroom and the golf shop,” Gillis said. “I played at a high level in high school and college, but I didn't really know that's what I wanted to do after graduating college.”
Gillis is ready to start her own family any day now. She and her husband are preparing to celebrate their fourth wedding anniversary in September, and they’re expecting the birth of their first child by the end of this month.
So golfing once again has been halted.
“We're expecting a little boy, which we're very excited about,” Gillis said. I hung up my clubs up a couple weeks ago, but I actually played really well in my last round.”
She was under par going into the 18th hole and three-putted to finish even.
“But I gave all those men a run for their money,” she noted. “My body is not quite moving how I would like it, so I hung them up on a high note.”
The soon-to-be-new parents are planning to raise their son in sports similar to Gaby’s experiences at West and MSU.
“I feel like that was important that our parents didn't limit us to just one sport,” Gillis said. “When you're on a team learning how to work with people, you're working with people to try to be as successful as possible and win. And with individual sports, you're trying to find success as well. It translates to the real world.”
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PHOTOS (Top) At left, Gaby (Muller) Gillis poses for a photo with her Traverse City West coach Cathy Coon during her senior season in 2009. At right, Gillis now serves as a golf pro at John’s Island Club in Vero Beach, Fla. (2) Gillis stands for a photo with her husband Tim, who also serves as a pro at John’s Island. (3) Gillis, right, blocks a kill attempt for West’s volleyball team. (4) Gillis posts scores during an event. (Photos provided by Gaby Gillis.)