By Stan Olenik – Editor/Publisher

Erik Erlenkeuser set some lofty goals for his golf game and now he can put a check mark next to one of the big ones.

Erlenkeuser is the South Carolina Golf Association winner of the Jay Haas Player of the Year award.

The Anderson Junior finished on top of the season long Heritage Classic Points race.

You may need to take a 600 level college math course to make sense of the points system used to rank juniors, but a summer surge earned Erlenkeuser a comfortable lead after all events were counted.

The Hanna High School golfer finished ahead of Greer’s Dawson Szabo, Moore’s Will Ruth and last year’s Haas Player of the Year, Bennett Scaletta, his Yellow Jacket teammate.

While the points distribution can be confusing, playing in just about every event available for a SC junior, there was no denying the quality of his year.

Erlenkeuser had the best season long stroke average at 71.76, almost a full shot better than the next golfer on the list.

With a check mark next to one goal the 2024 Player of the Year is ready to cross a few more off his list.

“I’ve gotten to the top of the South Carolina rankings and now I’d like to see if I can get ranked nationally and get a win. I know I have to keep working to make it happen,” said Erlenkeuser.

The year started a little slow, but as the temperatures warmed up so did his game.

His runner up finish in the SCGA Caddie Classic was followed by a pair of high school wins at the Bobcat Invitational and the Region I championship,

A third place finish in the 5A state championship helped his Hanna team win the state championship for the second year in a row.

After the completion of the high school season, Erlenkeuser became a fixture at or near the top of junior leader boards.

In 17 events after the end of the high school season the 6 foot 7 inch golfer had 12 top-10 finishes, 6 top-5s, three runner-ups including a seven hole playoff loss in the Carolina Junior Boys championship and a 2nd place finish at The Blade.

He broke through for a win at the Harvey Brock Orange Jacket Classic at the start of the school year.

Until he finished on top of the state points race his most significant accomplishment was a tie for second in his age group at the Notah Begay National championship.

The tournament received national coverage on a tape delayed broadcast on the Golf Channel.

“It was just another tournament for me and the stakes were a little higher until the cameras came out. It was a little more pressure. Luckily for me I love it and do well under pressure,” he said.

His success has caused him to work even harder to fill some of the gaps in his game.

“I’ve been working with Todd Ellison at Southern Oaks and he has helped me with my game and the way I approach each round,” he said.

Erlenkeuser is glad to have recently been sponsored by Mizuno and believes the new equipment will help level out his game.

Now with a South Carolina Player of the Year award on his shelf and an almost certain book end award from the CGA Erlenkeuser is setting some new goals.

“As far as my game goes, I want to be able to be more consistent. I want to hit draws and fades on demand,” he said.

As he improves as a player he would like the improvement to reflect in the national junior rankings.

“I want to get into the top-100 and I am going to work to be in the top-10. I want to play college golf somewhere near home in the Southeast and then turn pro and win the Master and all the Majors,” he said with conviction.

With a strong academic background and a 5.0 GPA Erlenkeuser should have plenty of options for college.

“I’ve had contact with a lot of college coaches. I want to stay where it is warm and I’m taking the process slowly and exploring each opportunity to see what is the right fit for me,”he said.

Until then Erlenkeuser will be getting ready for the high school golf season and a possible third straight state title for his Hanna team.

“I’m looking forward to the season, I think this will be our best year. I don’t think our team has ever been better,” concluded the new South Carolina Junior Player of the Year.