Page signs star-studded class
11/15/2013 8:05:00 PM | Men's Golf
Johnson, who is a Barberton, Ohio native and a senior at Walsh Jesuit High School is ranked No. 1 in the state by Junior Golf Scoreboard. Holt, who is a Stow, Ohio native and senior at Stow-Munroe Falls High School, is ranked No. 2 by Junior Golf Scoreboard. Hughes, who is senior at Carlisle High School in Carlisle, Pa., is a three-time top-10 finisher in the PIAA-AAA State Championships.
"First and foremost, these three young men are terrific students," said Page, who has led the Golden Flashes to 19 Mid-American Conference championships and 22 trips to NCAA competition since being named head coach at his alma mater in 1978. "All three have above 3.6 grade-point averages. All three are set up for success on and off the golf course, and that is No. 1 when you come to Kent State. All three have also played golf on the national scene. They are all tremendous athletes. At 6-foot-1, 6-2 and 6-6, they fit the mold of the modern player with their size and strength. I am thrilled they will play their college golf at Kent State University."
Johnson is a three-time OHSAA All-State selection who finished second in the 2012 Division I OHSAA State Championship (73-74=147). He has several victories on the junior golf circuit, including a 17-shot win at the 2012 Golfweek Junior Tour event at the Phoenix Links when he shot 66-68. He also won the 2012 Good Park Junior Golf Tournament (68-72=140 and finished second at the Hudson Junior Invitational in both 2012 (73-76-70=219) and 2013 (74-71=145). In his second appearance at the USGA Junior Amateur earlier this year, Johnson advanced to match play (75-76=151)
Chase is the son of Mel and Cheryl Johnson.
"Anybody in Northeast Ohio who has followed junior golf has also been following Chase Johnson since he was about 12-years old," said Page. "He has just dominated the local junior golf scene. He has gone on to bigger and better things at the state and national level. Chase is mature beyond his years on the golf course. And while he is a great golf talent, the thing that stands out the most about him is his maturity and his golf IQ. His golf-course management skills at this young age are just superb.
"Chase has a reputation for hitting it a long way, but in watching him during recruiting I can say that people have missed out on how good his short game and his putting stroke really are."
Ian Holt out-dueled his future Kent State teammate, Johnson, to win the 2013 Hudson Junior Invitational (69-70=139). He is another Three-time OHSAA All-State selection who was medalist at the 2011 OHSAA DIVISION I State Championship (73-77=150). During the 2011 season, Holt finished in the top 10 in eight AJGA events including rounds of 72-69-72 at the 2013 AJGA Memorial Junior at the Scarlet Course in Columbus.
Ian is the son of Dale and Cindy Holt.
"We have been following Ian since he was 10-to-12 years old," said Page. "Ian is big and strong. When you watch him, you get impressed by how good his golf swing is and how he really kills it. But he is more than that. He is the total package. In the last few years he has really improved his wedge game, his chipping and his putting. Ian's consistency in the major AJGA tournaments has been just phenomenal. On the course, he is a fiery competitor. He is very focused and he is that kind of explosive player who can make a run of four or five birdies in a row. We've seen him do it when we were recruiting him, and it is fun to watch when he gets into one of those streaks.
"We couldn't be more thrilled to keep both the No. 1 and 2 players in Ohio right here in state. Both Ian and Chase could play anywhere in the country, but they committed to us early. They wanted to come to Kent State since day one. It's a compliment to our golf program that they wanted to stay home to play for a top-25 team and compete for a national championship."
Hughes won the 2013 Mid-Penn Conference title in a playoff (73). He won both the Callaway World Junior (75-70) and the Optimist International State Qualifiers (69). The two-time PIAA All-State selection demonstrated a flair for the dramatic when he aced the final hole of the Eastern Regional finals in 2012 to move into a four-man playoff for the final spot in the PIAA Championship. Hughes survived that playoff and eventually earned the top state finish among Mid-Penn golfers with a solo seventh. Hughes is also a three-year starter for the Carlisle High School basketball team.
J.D. is the son of Jim and Becky Hughes.
"Everything J.D. does on the golf course is so fundamentally sound," said Page. "He is a lefty and at 6-foot-6 he is the tallest player we've ever recruited. He played basketball at a very high level, too, so he is a great athlete. When you are 6-6, you have some leverage, and of course he hits the ball a long way. But he also has great touch and great feel for the game. J.D. may be a bit of a late bloomer with tremendous upside. His demeanor on the golf course is very professional. He handles himself in a very confident way. It was a treat to see him in the recruiting process and how he kept getting better and better all summer long."
