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44 | November 10, 2016 | The Homer Horizon sports
homerhorizon.com
Going Places
Homer’s Ricky Costello looks on to college
Iowa State commit
recalls top moments
with Celtics golfers
Randy Whalen
Freelance Reporter
Ricky Costello was born
to golf.
“When I was real young,
my parents gave me a baseball
bat,” Costello said. “But
I’d take it around the house
and swing it like a golf club.”
Costello is still swinging
like that, but for years it’s
been with real golf clubs.
After an illustrious high
school career at Providence
Catholic High School, the
Homer Glen resident and
high school senior signed a
letter of intent to continue to
golf in college at Iowa State
University.
While Costello is making
it official with the signing
this month, he verbally committed
to Iowa State a year
ago.
“I committed pretty early,
in the fall of junior year,”
said Costello, who plans
to go into a business field.
“I took about six visits but
didn’t get the chance to visit
a ton of other schools besides
Iowa State.”
That is because Iowa
State, located right in the
center of the state in Ames,
has one of the best Division I
golf programs in the nation.
“With coach [Andrew]
Tank and coach [Chad] Keohane
at Iowa State, I couldn’t
ask for better coaches,”
Costello said. “Plus, they
have a new practice facility
there that is unbelievable.
“[The practice facility]
is really crazy. They spent
$9 million on it a few years
ago, and it has a huge range.
There’s different types of surfaces
and bunkers, and you
can simulate most any shot
with a dropped ball. Plus, if
we are going to a tournament,
we can put down the type of
grass that will be there and
use that to practice.”
The Cyclones have done
very well since Tank took
over in 2010. Under Tank’s
tutelage, they have had a
team or an individual qualify
for NCAA Regional competition
in the last five seasons
(Team — 2012, 2014, 2015;
Individual — 2013, 2016).
Since 2010, Iowa State has
won four tournament titles,
finished runner-up 12 times,
had 11 individual medalists
and produced five All-Big
12 performers a total of eight
times.
Costello, who started golfing
when he was 4 and started
playing competitively when
he was 9, made an impression
on people at an early age.
“Back when he was little,
he was out there early, and
they knew who he was,”
Providence coach John Platt
said of Costello. “He lived up
to expectations and had some
big moments as a freshman,
including qualifying for state.
“He was the first one that
I’ve had here that qualified
for state all four years. It used
to be asked, ‘Who is going
to be the next John Thomas
[who was sixth in Class 3A
in 2009]?’ Or, ‘Who is going
to be the next Gabe Aprati
[19th in Class 3A in 2010]?’
Now, people will ask, ‘Who
is going to be the next Ricky
Costello?’”
The success Costello had
at Providence was unparalleled.
“This season, in 16 rounds
of golf, he had nine under par
rounds and one even par,”
Platt said. “He finished with
a 71.2 average, which is below
par.
“I have not seen the facilities
[at Iowa State], but I
think he has a chance to play
Ricky Costello, a senior at Providence Catholic High School from Homer Glen, will continue to play golf at Iowa State next
season after excelling at the sport for the Celtics. 22nd Century Media File Photo
there right away. He’s dedicated
to the team, and he’ll fit
right in.”
He fit right in at Providence,
helping the Celtics to
Class 3A state finals appearances
as a team the past three
seasons. There, they finished
tied for fourth in 2014, ninth
in 2015 and tied for eighth
this October.
“Coach Platt and the golf
program were some of the
central factors on why I went
to Providence,” Costello said.
“I loved playing for [Platt].
He’s a great guy.”
When he was younger,
Costello did actually use a
baseball bat to play baseball.
But he gave it up after fourth
grade to concentrate on golf.
“I think it’s the fact that
it’s so individual,” Costello
said of what he loves about
the game of golf. “It’s all on
you, and there’s no excuses.
You’ve got to be willing to do
what it takes.”
“I think it’s the fact that it’s so
individual. It’s all on you, and
there’s no excuses. You’ve got to be
willing to do what it takes.”
Ricky Costello — Providence golfer, on why he
enjoys the sport
But he admits the mental
part of the game can be
grinding.
“That’s one of the parts
I don’t like,” he said of the
mental game. “I struggle
with that sometimes. You
can have all the good shots in
the world, but if your mental
game isn’t there for you, it’s
going to be tough.”
Something that was tough
for Costello and the Celtics
was the end of this past season.
The team was among
the favorites to win the state
title, and Costello hoped to at
lest least duplicate his medalist
finishes of his sophomore
and junior years. Instead, he
faltered on the final 13 holes,
going 13-over in that span, to
finish tied for 23rd with an
83. The team fell out of contention,
too, tying Highland
Park for eighth place with a
54-over for the two days, although
that was only 10 shots
out of third and 12 shots out
of second.
“It was tough, and it wasn’t
what we were looking for,”
said Costello, who placed
sixth in the state as a junior
and fourth as a freshman.
“But at the same time, there
were a lot of good things this
season.”
They were numerous.
“I’ll remember my holein-one
this season,” Costello
said of the ace Sept. 23 at
the 17th hole that helped the
Celtics capture the title of the
Don Nichols/Will County
Invite at Wedgewood Golf
Course. “Also, shooting a 66
at the [Joliet Central] regional
[Oct. 4 at Wedgewood].
That was really good and one
of my best rounds of golf.
“But I’ll also always remember
my first tournament
at Providence [Aug. 19, 2013
helping the Celtics to the title
of the St. Ignatius Invitational
at the Joliet Country Club].
The team aspect was something
that was new to me, and
I enjoyed it.”
Now, he will have four
more years to enjoy it at Iowa
State.