LF_082219

28 | August 22, 2019 | The lake forest leader SPORTS
LakeForestLeader.com
Going Places
‘Late-bloomer’ Fisher set to thrive at Miami of Ohio
Nick Frazier, Sports Editor
When watching Danny
Fisher excel on the golf
course, you would think
he’s been playing the game
for most of his life.
Surprisingly, that isn’t
the case, as the Miami
University of Ohio commit
says he first tried out the
sport with his grandfather
when he was eight years
old. Fisher didn’t truly
become a golfer until he
was about 12 or 13, having
focused more on baseball
and soccer before then.
A late start didn’t end
up hindering Fisher, as he
graduated from Lake Forest
High School this spring
with an impressive resume.
A four-year member
of the Scouts varsity team,
Fisher was named to the
All-North Suburban Conference
team as a junior.
In his final year at Lake
Forest, he carded a 67 at
the NSC invitational and
helped carry the team to
a fourth-place finish at the
state meet.
Most recently, Fisher
won the 39th Chick Evans
Junior Amateur Tournament,
organized by the
Illinois Junior Golf Association
in July. The Lake
Forest resident won five
rounds of match play to
take home the trophy.
Fisher says his being a
late-bloomer on the course
ended up giving him a
valuable chip on his shoulder.
“I think the four years
of high school I just continually
got better,” Fisher
said. “There was just always
more I had to work
on. As others were maybe
beginning to flatline a little
bit, I was continuing to
grow.”
Fisher recalls winning a
Danny Fisher signs his National Letter of Intent to play golf at Miami University of Ohio last November. 22nd Century
Media file photo
nine-hole tournament when
he first started committing
to golf. It had a big impact
on him eventually falling in
love with the game.
“In the grand scheme
of things it didn’t mean a
ton to anyone else besides
me,” Fisher said. “To see I
could take home a trophy
in something I’ve done
stood out to me, so I was
like ‘Yeah, I’ll keep giving
this a try.’
“It’s definitely a game
where you have to be methodical,
and I’m not one
who loves to exert a ton
of energy, I’m not the guy
who’s going to spring up
and down the field. The
game itself really struck
out to me as a game where
you really have to think,
and I enjoyed that. It’s a
game where you put so
much time into it and you
can see the results come
out of that.”
Fisher played baseball
his freshman year
at LFHS, but afterwards
went all in on golf. He had
joined The Golf Practice,
a training facility in Highland
Park, the summer before
his freshman year to
help him make the Scouts
varsity team.
In his senior year, Fisher
averaged a score of 71.5
per 18 holes, illustrating
his growth as a golfer.
Shortly after his senior
season, Fisher committed
to the Red Hawks program.
Miami of Ohio finished
tied for sixth out of
nine teams in the Mid-
American Conference
tournament this past year.
On top of that, a bevy of
North Shore golfers have
gone through the program.
Highwood’s Patrick Flavin
graduated from the Red
Hawks in 2018, Northbrook’s
Brian Ohr left this
past spring, and Glenview
resident Charlie Nikitas
will be a senior on the
team this fall.
Fisher watched as Flavin
went on to compete in
professional tournaments,
helping draw him to a collegiate
program that helps
prepare its golfers for a
post-grad career on the
links.
“I want to see how far
the game of golf takes me
after college,” Fisher said.
“I was a late bloomer, but
it’s a program that could
trust my progression.
There was a sense of comfort
when I went on my
visit to meet them, it was
kind of the same mindset
of the program, which was
nice.”
On Aug. 19, Fisher left
Lake Forest for his new
home in Ohio. He figures
to contribute plenty as a
freshman, but there’s still
more he wants to work on
Fisher watches his ball while competing in the Chick Evans Junior Amateur Tournament
in July. Photo courtesy of IJGA
in the meantime.
“Just maybe more consistency,”
Fisher said. “I
know I can compete with
the best college players
out there, it’s just some of
my scores, I can get a little
lackluster at times. Just
more experience competing
against better players
will really be the big thing.
I know I have the game for
it, it’s just more time to
hone my skills.”
The Red Hawks kick
off the 2019 season at the
North Intercollegiate tournament
in Madison, Wisc.