Sep 30, 2024 By Eleanor Bailey 5 min read

Ellie Benson approached the WPIAL Class 3A girls’ golf championship in the same manner that she prepares for an examination in school. She studied.

“My coach and I plotted every hole,” she said. “I wrote things down in a little notebook I carried with me. I looked at my notes and reviewed them a lot.”

The scribbled entries proved a major factor in Benson’s ability to advance to the head of the class in the district.

During the final round played Sept. 30 on a soggy Butler Country Club course, Benson shot a 3-over-par 74. That score combined with her first-round showing of 75 at Willowbrook Golf Course provided Benson with the winning edge. Her 149 total was eight strokes ahead of Elizabeth-Forward’s Mya Morgan, who won the title last year.

“Exactly,” Benson enthused. “It was like having all the answers for a test.”

Though she was tested, particularly by the weather conditions, Benson finally aced the WPIAL exam. As a freshman, she took third. As a sophomore, she was runner-up to Morgan.

“Ellie was dominant,” said Peters Township head coach Mike Lacy.

“I felt like I just focused on myself,” Benson said. “I didn’t want to get in a match-play situation with the other competitors. I just stuck to what I knew and my game plan.”

Though the course was in good condition to start, it deteriorated after a couple of hours of drizzle. A soggier course took its toll but not on Benson’s mental outlook.

“You will make mistakes,” she told herself. “Just accept it.”

Benson bogeyed the first hole of the match.

“Just a mixture of first-hole nerves and the need to get acclimated with the course,” she explained.

Benson responded with two birdies, the first on a 15-foot putt.

“When I made that putt, I got a boost. It gave me really good momentum for the rest of the front nine.”

Benson shot par on the remaining holes and finished with a 1-under 35 heading into the back nine.

“I was feeling calm but I didn’t want to get ahead of myself because I knew from experience anything can happen. My coach even told me that weird things will happen.”

Perhaps the oddest occurred on No. 6. Benson almost had a hole in one but then missed her 1-foot putt and parred out the hole.

“All I have to do is tap it in, I thought to myself but then I missed it and it was back to reality and accepting that you are only human.”

On the back nine, Benson managed a 3-over-par 39. She bogeyed three holes but carded pars on six others to finish the day with a 74.

“That’s when the rain picked up,” she explained. “I was trying to keep everything dry, pay attention to my notes and game plan and ignore the weather. There were a few mistakes but I figured if I stay calm, I will minimize the damage.”

Thanks to mental sports performance coach Bill Nelson, Benson has neutralized her thoughts out on the course. For 20 years, Nelson has worked with numerous professionals on both the PGA and LPGA tours, NCAA champions and Olympians as well as US amateur and junior winners.

“We do FaceTime calls and he has helped me a lot, especially when I need to talk out my game or figure things out. It’s not so much skill related. It’s the thought process on the course. My mental game has improved by talking to him.”

To become the first girl in Peters Township High School history to win a WPIAL golf championship required nerves of steel, indeed. Last year, Benson owned a two-shot lead heading into the finals but succumbed to Morgan. This year, she held a three-shot advantage over Pine-Richland’s Siena Smith, who finished third overall.

“I feel my game has matured with each passing year,” Benson said. “Last year was not the outcome I wanted but it taught me a lot about myself out there on the course. My mental aspect improved and that helped me a lot this year. That was the difference.”

“Last year I had a two shot lead and lost it quickly. It was three shots this year but I was not as nervous. It was more tense though but I had confidence in myself and I keep thinking positively.”

Benson maintains a positive attitude heading into the PIAA tournament set for Oct. 21-23 at Penn State.

“Hopefully, I will play well there, too,” she said. “The goal is a championship and it will be the same approach as here. I’m going to take good notes in the practice rounds. The competition is going to be greater there, but I am preparing for states.”

Benson will not be alone at the PIAA tournament. Her teammates: Bettty Glyptis, Sophia Severns and Brooke Vowcheck qualified for states by finishing fourth, fifth and tied for sixth place in the WPIAL tournament.

Four Peters Township golfers medaled during the WPIAL Class 3A championships. Ellie Benson, second from left, captured the title with a score of 75-74-149 during two rounds of golf. Pictured with Benson are also Sophia Severns (fifth), Brooke Vowcheck (tied for sixth) and Betty Glyptis (fourth). All qualified for the PIAA tournament to be held Oct. 21-23 at Penn State.