Midview grad, Wellington resident Ben Hogan qualifies for Mid-Am golf tournament

Almost 25 years after his third-place finish at the Division I state golf tournament, Ben Hogan is getting ready for the biggest competition of his life. The 42-year-old Midview graduate and Wellington resident is one of 264 golfers from 20 nations that will tee off today in the 42nd USGA Mid-Amateur Championship in Scarborough, New York. Hogan earned his spot in the Mid-Am by surviving a five-man playoff for the final berth at a qualifier at Kirtland Country Club in Willoughby on Aug. 3. "I was the last person to get into the field, I was on the alternate list and didn't get in until about eight hours before entries closed," Hogan said. "It was just a really solid day. I started out with birdies on the first two holes and just played really solid until the final few holes. I got to 3 under, which I think was leading at the time, with three holes to play, then I had a few loose shots that cost me a few strokes coming down the stretch there." Hogan shot an even par 70 but had to wait for over two hours for the final golfers to come back to the clubhouse to see if his score would be good enough to earn one of three qualifying spots. When the playoff commenced, Hogan holed out from 150 yards with a 9-iron on the first hole to secure his first trip to a USGA tournament. "I was playing in the playoff with a bunch of guys who had just played well that day and I had plenty of time to reflect on the last three holes that I kind of screwed up." Hogan said. "I knew they were all great players. In the situation you just have to get it together and be prepared to play as many holes as you need to in order to advance.' Hogan eventually moved to Southern California after graduating from Midview in 1999. He worked in law enforcement from 2007 to 2019 when he moved back to Lorain County. For much of the time, Hogan but golf on the back burner as he focused on his career. "I took a break for quite a while," Hogan said. "In December 2005 I got hired as a police officer in Southern California and for six to eight years I really didn't golf much. I would play occasionally in some charity scrambles but really nothing competitive. I was so immersed in work I really didn't miss it too much. "I got injured and had some time off and I guess you could almost say golf was my therapy. I would go out to the golf course and spend some time by myself and take my mind off of work. It took me six or seven weeks to actually start to play well again. It was very frustrating. Once I got my game in a pretty good place again it made it a lot more fun." Hogan's game really came around when he returned to Ohio. "When I got back into competitive golf I really had the nerves the first few tournaments." said Hogan, who belongs to Oberlin Golf Club. "It was a good feeling. I kinda missed that. To have the feeling again was really, really good." Hogan has won a number of local tournaments this season, including two in a row in the weeks leading up to the Mid-Am qualifier. Now he's excited to see how he'll fare against stronger competition. "I just want to play solid, smart golf and I want to see where my game stacks up on a national and international level," Hogan said. "Hopefully, I can have a couple of above-average rounds and see where that stacks up against some of the best players in the world." Over the years, Hogan has received a lot of attention because of his name, which just happens to be the same as one of the all-time greats of the game. Now he's hoping his play can be his calling card. "I feel like I'm trying to prove myself a little bit," Hogan said. "Obviously, I've got the name that intrigues everyone and draws media attention. Sometimes I feel like I have to prove it's not just the name, I'm actually a pretty decent golfer at times." To win the Mid-Am, which is open to amateur golfers 25 and over with a handicap of 3.4 or lower, Hogan needs to survive a grueling six days of golf. The tournament begins with stroke play today and Sunday at Sleepy Hollow Country Club in Scarborough, New York, and Fenway Golf Club in Scarsdale, New York, to trim the field to 64. Then comes four days of match play at Sleepy Hollow, culminating in a 36-hole match play final Sept. 14. "Knowing how the USGA sets up courses, hitting it in the fairway and hitting it on the green will be a premium," Hogan said. "I just have to trust that I did the right amount of prep work and stay in the right place mentally." "This is my first USGA championship so a lot of it is venturing into the unknown for me. Quite honestly, going through the registration process on Wednesday and seeing how well that process was set up makes me want to get back here and play in more USGA championships." Contact Todd Shapiro at (440) 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com.