2023 NewsTribune Girls Golfer of the Year

When Allie Thome was in sixth grade, her father introduced her to golf.

“My dad loves golf, so he taught me how to play, and I’ve always loved it since,” Thome said.

Thome, who said she enjoys golf because it’s an individual sport and it’s all up to her, had a knack for golf.

“I would say I was pretty good at golf because I played softball my whole life, so it kind of came natural to me,” Thome said.

With that golf background, Thome was successful right away in her career at La Salle-Peru as she had a 52.5 average as a freshman before turning in a 51.8 average last fall.

This season, Thome took her game to another level.

She cut four strokes off her average to lead the area with a 47.8 average. Thome was a three-time medalist in nine-hole matches and placed third at the Interstate 8 Conference Tournament.

Thome capped her season by shooting an 89 at the Class 2A Bradley-Bourbonnais Regional to advance to the Normal West Sectional where she carded a 99.

For all she accomplished this season, Thome is the 2023 NewsTribune Girls Golfer of the Year.

“I’m very proud of what Allie did this year,” L-P coach Patrick Goy said. “I’ve had her since she was a freshman. I knew she had a lot of potential. About midway through this season, I thought she was sitting on a big year still because she came out of then gate really, really good. She was just very consistent the entire year. She didn’t have two bad rounds in a row. She just played very well. It was nice to see her improve throughout the year. Even into the postseason at conference and regional, she just kept going and going. She had a really good year.”

Thome’s improvement came after an offseason of putting a lot of work into her game.

“She was just very consistent the entire year. She didn’t have two bad rounds in a row. She just played very well. It was nice to see her improve throughout the year.”

—  Patrick Goy, La Salle-Peru coach

Thome and her dad joined a league at Bunkers in Peru, which features golf simulators, and in the summer she played in the Illinois Valley High School League where she won her division.

“That really helped,” Thome said.

Thome also was able to improve her putting this season.

“My coach helped me a lot with my putting,” Thome said. “He’s always been a really good putter, so he showed me all of his tricks on how to do it. [He taught me] to follow through on my stroke and don’t stop and be confident. He helped me a lot throughout the season with that.

“I’m really thankful for my coach helping me throughout the year. I wouldn’t have been able to go as far as I did and achieve my goals without him.”

Goy said he noticed Thome’s improvement right away at the start of the season.

“She played a lot over the summer so coming into the year, I thought she was going to have a really solid year,” Goy said. “[The summer golf] just really helped in all aspects of her game, but I really noticed a change in her iron play. She was having a lot more putts for par and putts for birdie that she didn’t have last year. Overall, her game really improved. It was a lot of those little things I’ve been working with her on since I had her as a freshman – to get better at getting out of trouble, getting yourself on the green and having a putt for par. She did a lot of those little things that really helped her keep her scores down.”

Thome and Goy are expecting more improvement next fall.

“If she keeps playing and keeps working on her game in the summer, I really think she’ll drop her average a couple more shots next year,” Goy said. “It’s pretty exciting to have her back next year. I’m just really proud of the growth she’s shown over the last three years, and I’m looking forward to next year.”