Boys Golf: Quinn Prchal fine-tuning game before heading to Princeton

Updated: June 5, 2012 7:14PM

Quinn Prchal was at the Deerfield Golf Club on Tuesday to play a practice round for today’s (Thursday’s) Illinois Open qualifier.

Like most talented players, the recent Glenbrook South graduate will be busy this summer competing in tournaments across the state, region and country.

“I am just continuing to improve and work on my game,” he said.

Prchal, who will golf at Princeton, is coming off a memorable prep career. Last fall, he finished third in the state, his best performance in three years at the tournament.

This summer, the two-time defending CSL champion is looking to raise his game another level by competing in bigger tournaments against more seasoned players.

“There’s always room to improve,” he said. “This summer will be a big step up for me. For me to continue to play well, score well and place well, I need to get better.”

One of the points of emphasis is tightening up an already solid swing. Prchal understands the margin that separates good players from great players is sometimes as small as a blade of bentgrass.

“Honestly, I have a lot of things to work on,” he said. “One thing is to get my swing more consistent. Hopefully, I am doing that, and it will show in tournaments this summer.”

After the qualifier for the Illinois Open — July 16-18 at the Glen Club — Prchal will be at Sportsman’s in Northbrook for the qualifying tournament for the Illinois State Junior Amateur at Makray Memorial in Barrington.

Prchal also plans to play in the Northern Amateur in late July at Sand Creek Country Club in Chesterton, Ind. Qualifiers for the U.S. Public Links and U.S. Amateur also are on the schedule.

Then it will be time for Prchal to head off to Princeton, where he hopes to help the Tigers improve on last year’s fifth-place finish in the Ivy League.

“I felt like I could be both challenged on the golf course and in the classroom at Princeton,” he said. “I also enjoyed meeting coach (Will Green) and felt comfortable around the team.

“Princeton had all of those factors going for it, and I couldn’t be happier with my decision.”

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