Young golfer is on the go this summer

By Mark Ambrogi
mark.ambrogi@indystar.com

Patrick Rodgers, 15, Avon, plays today in the Optimist International Junior Golf Championship and then the Kids World Team Championship, both in Florida. He‘s second in the state for his age group with a 72.67 average. He has been playing golf since he was 6.

— Photo provided by Charlie Rodgers

AVON — At 5-foot-6 and 110 pounds, Patrick Rodgers doesn‘t appear imposing.
Yet the 15-year-old Avon resident is packing a punch on the golf course.
Rodgers, who is competing in national youth golf tournaments this summer, credits working with Chad Odaffer, a trainer from the National Institute for Fitness and Sport in Indianapolis.

“He has really helped me get stronger,” Rodgers said. “One of my main problems has been distance (on the course); he has really helped me improve it.”

Rogers, who will be a freshman at Avon High School, begins play today in the Optimist International Junior Golf Championship in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. He then will compete in the U.S. Kids World Team Championships in Naples, Fla.

Rodgers advanced to the Optimist event in the Indiana qualifying tournament by shooting a 73 at Deer Creek Golf Course in Clayton in June. That put him in a four-way tie for first place.

“I‘m also becoming more ready to play this year so my mental game has improved, too,” Rodgers said.

In June, Rodgers reached the final 16 of match play for the Boys State Junior Championship in Auburn. He competed in the masters division for golfers 19 and younger and advanced to match play with a two-round score of 143 (76-77) in stroke play.

Rodgers is second in the state in the age 15 – 16 division with a 72.67 average. Earlier this month, he won a Mountain Dew Tour event at Yorktown by shooting 72.
Rodgers' biggest win came last fall when he captured a national 13 – 14 title in Lexington, Ky.

Rodgers takes instruction from his coach, Kurt Schier, at Orchard Golf Center in Greenwood.

“I've worked with him for two or three years, and he has really improved my swing,” Rodgers said.

About once a month Rodgers works with Gary Gant, a club professional from Pine Valley County Club in Fort Wayne. “We work on my chipping and putting,” he said. “He has taught me a lot of life lessons that I‘ll never forget so he has been a huge help also. He‘s a great teacher.” Rodgers, who turned 15 on June 30, has been playing golf since he was 6.

“But I really started getting serious when I was 9 or 10,” he said. “I started to go to golf courses a lot and then I started playing tournaments when I was 11 or 12.”

Rodgers said his family members make his busy golf travel schedule possible. Along with his parents, Charlie and Judy Rodgers, both grandparents and his aunt help take him to tournaments.

“Without them there is no way I could do any of this,” he said.

Rodgers also gets support from his 11-year-old sister, Caroline.

“She has to be at all these (tournaments) and I really thank her for being there for me,” Rodgers said.

Though golf has taken up much of his summer, Rodgers said he does have other interests. “I play basketball and hang out with my friends,” he said. “But this is just a busy time with a lot of tournaments so I have to try to crunch them in.”

Rodgers is eager to play high school golf. Avon finished sixth in the state tournament this June.

“I‘m hoping I can be another piece of the puzzle and help improve their success,” Rodgers said.