Lehmkuhl hitting stride on course

Cedar Rapids Jefferson golfer Eric Lehmkuhl has witnessed big improvements lead to smaller scores. Both helped the J-Hawk junior capture medalist honors at the Mississippi Valley Conference Valley Divisional meet Tuesday at Finkbine golf course in Iowa City.Lehmkuhl shot 74, two shots better than runner-up Carson Hillery of Dubuque Hempstead. It came about a week after Lehmkuhl finished third in the CRANDIC meet at Finkbine, where he was one of only four to shoot under par in windy conditions.  “He started to play consistent, good golf,” Jefferson Coach Steve Koepke said. “I think now he's just now getting into the groove of how to score.“He's kind of hitting full-stride now.”Koepke said he isn't certain what flipped the switch for Lehmkuhl, but the J-Hawks coach said he has dropped his 9-hole scoring average to about 41.5, despite shooting around 90 in a pair of rounds early this season. The two have worked on Lehmkuhl guiding the ball's flight better, which helps him place it better on his approach.“The success he's had recently is a direct correlation to how he's practiced recently,” Koepke said. “He's learned to control his ball flight and trajectory and his putting has really improved."Putting has been key for Lehmkuhl. The added work has allowed him to drop the number of putts per round. In both meets at Finkbine, Lehmkuhl had less than 1.8 putts per hole.“The result has been keeping his ball in play and putting the ball on the green in spots where he doesn't have to defensively putt,” Koepke said. “His putting statistics have dropped.“He's not giving himself difficult second putts all because he's putting the golfball on the green in the right place.”Koepke said "confidence begets confidence" and Lehmkuhl worked on things, showed he can do them under pressure, leading to good rounds. Lehmkuhl is showing his potential, and as the season progresses so will his game.“There's a difference between someone playing golf and a golfer. Eric has found that niche of how to be a golfer,” said Koepke, noting that Lehmkuhl is a J-Hawk baseball player so he doesn't compete in Iowa Golf Association events or many golf tournaments in the summer. "Eric can be a very good player. He's a baseball player turned into a golfer in the fall. He's learning. He'll get better. I don't think we scratched the surface yet.”