A surgeon on the course, Paeglow is Boys Golf Player of The Year

DeKALB — DeKalb senior golfer Jack Paeglow said he had never had a time where he hasn’t loved golf.

“I’ve always loved it," Paeglow said." If anything I like it more and more. When I play good, it’s like I want to keep going and see pushing myself and I want to keep playing better. I just love working on it. I love seeing myself get better and better.”

That love of golf helped the Paeglow finish third at state and earned him the Daily Chronicle 2019 Boys Golf Player of the Year.

This past year of golfing with his brother Brett, while his family and avid golf lovers watch on, has been a rewarding experience, even more so thanks to the ways in which he's seen teammates grow.

Everyone on the high school team has gotten better since they started," Paeglow said. "That’s one of the "biggest things you can hope for."

For coaches, it becomes less of a burden to coach every member of a team when Paeglow was around to provide instruction and tips.

“When you have someone like Jack it makes everything a little easier," first-year Barbs head coach Brad Kerkman said. "He is naturally a leader and expects a lot of himself.”

Travelling around the country, playing golf helped Paeglow to learn the nuances of different courses, fix his mistakes and think his way through the game.

“He’s way beyond his years in his ability to manage a golf course,” Kerkman said.

That approach to recovering from poor shots, and a refined short game leads Kerkman to call Jack Paeglow "a surgeon," particularly thanks to his short game.

“There’s holes for Jack that a lot of kids would look at par holes but he knows if he gets to a number off the tee and he gets to a spot, they should become birdies for him," Kerkman said.

Having a father, David, who was the head golf professional at Kishwaukee Country Club was certainly a push toward the sport, but he's never grown weary of his time on the links,

“I can’t remember a time in my life where I hadn’t around golf," Jack Paeglow said. "It’s kind of just been there my whole life.”

The senior golfer came in with an even-par 144 over two days and 36 holes of golf to finish third in Class 3A as the Barbs finished eighth as a team. The trip to state was the Barbs boys team’s first since 1982.

“I had a lot of fun, at state I was just really fighting hard, got off to a rough start, doubled (bogey) my first hole and I was staring bogey down on the second and managed to make par," Jack Paeglow said. "I think that really changed the scene when I made par. I think I went two under par after that. I just learned to keep fighting and that’s what I was telling the guys.”

Now, the soon to be Barbs graduate will soon take his talent to Normal, where he hopes to be on the travel team as a freshman for the Illinois State men’s golf team.

While there, Jack Paeglow take another lesson from his Barbs coaches, a lesson continually defined and learned among a group of teammates he glows about when talking about them.

“I just learned mentally to keep fighting no matter what," he said.

Daily Chronicle 2019 Boys Golf All-Area Team

Player of the Year: Jake Paeglow, DeKalb

First team

Josh Pehl, soph., Kaneland — Pehl finsihed in the top 5 at the Interstate 8 tournament and qualified as an individual for state, averaging a 38.1 this year per nine holes.

Bryce Stair, sr., Kaneland – Stair was second in the I8 tournament and averaged a 39.2 on the season.

James Keck, sr., DeKalb – Keck earned his third varsity letter after averaging a 40.1 this year. He carded a 77 at the sectional tournament at Kishawukee Country Club.

Danny Franzene, jr., DeKalb – The second-year varsity player had a breakout season, averaging a 40.7. He carded a 77 in the first round of the state tournament.

Iain Purdom, sr., Sycamore – Purdom averaged 40.8 per nine holes and claimed at a second place finish at the Class 2A Sandwich Regional. He also finished second in the Interstate 8′s season long points system.

Honorable mention – Nathan Cohn, sr., Sycamore; Trevor Pierce, jr., Genoa-Kingston; R.J. McCoy, sr., Indian Creek; William Schimbke, sr., DeKalb