Lakeside grad Wil Griffin managed to get the ink on his National Letter of Intent just in time.
Griffin signed to play golf at Eastern Kentucky Friday morning in a small ceremony at Hot Springs Golf and Country Club. With the final deadline to sign of Aug. 1, Griffin's 11th hour signing came partially due to the COVID-19 pandemic as well as him holding out to find the best school that he could.
"I really wanted just the best for myself," he said after the ceremony. "You know, deep down, you know, I believe that I could play at a high level like this, and it all worked out in the end. But, yeah, I just wanted to have that competition that, you know, Eastern Kentucky will offer and just the high level of golf that that I'll play at."
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The Class 5A state runner-up said that the coaching staff at EKU -- head coach Mike Whitson and assistant coach Will Sallee -- helped him realize that the school would be an ideal choice for him.
"Coach Whitson and coach Sallee, they did a really, really good job of showing me how, how good of a potential that I have," he said. "You know, they really recruited me, and they really want me to join the program. And then the facilities, I'm going to have access to three really, really nice courses, where I personally believe I can better my game. And then the school itself, education is really good. I'll get a major in business, and then follow through with that. So it's just a really good spot, just all in all, it was a really good spot for me."
Lakeside golf coach Kirsten Heideman said that she is proud to see Griffin move on to play at a high level.
"I'm so proud of Wil for signing to play for Eastern Kentucky," she said. "I think he is a determined player who works hard, and I think he will be a great asset to their team. Since Wil has played for me, I've seen him improve not only physically, but mentally as well. Golf is a sport that requires a steady attitude, and I've seen him demonstrate his maturity on the golf course, and I think he will definitely show that during his college years."
Griffin said that his drive to be the best helps him keep his composure while playing a sport that Jim Flick, a golf coach whose students included Tom Lehman and Jack Nicklaus, described as being "90% mental, and the other 10% is mental, too."
"Deep down, I really just want to be the best like that I can be -- be that if it's the best in the state, in the country, in the world and, you know, in college and professional golf," Griffin said. "I just want to be I just want to be the best. And that's really what drives me is that inner, inner, inner drive to just be better and get better every day."
As a teen who has played on courses all over the country, Griffin said that the Onwentsia Club in Lake Forest, Ill., is likely his favorite course to have played. He played the course at last year's Western Junior tournament.
"It was a world class golf course and a world class tournament," he said. "You know, it's the best 144 juniors in the world. So that was a really special, really special tournament to me. And then of course, on top of it, was just even -- it was the icing on the cake."