Sheyenne Alum Bartley Continuing Success at Collegiate Level With Minnesota-Crookston

Had best finish in 9 years for Crookston at NSIC Championships

CROOKSTON, Minn — As just a freshman Minnesota-Crookston’s Layton Bartley set the bar high finishing in the top 10 of the NSIC Tournament posting a 9 over par score, the best by any golden eagle golfer in 9 years by carding three consecutive rounds in the 70’s.

“Earlier in the season, I was really nervous coming in and looking at the preview of the tournament,” Bartley said. “Then once we got there, I felt like I was ready to bloom and I did just what we wanted to do.”

“There’s no big situation for Layton. Layton’s been through it all,” head coach Brad Heppner said. “For him to be in that last group on Tuesday, the second day of the conference tournament, he’s done that before in the state high school tournament.”

It was that experience of leading Sheyenne to its first state title as a senior making him comfortable for the high pressure moments.

“For him to finish high in that tournament and get them there and playing well there in the condition he had, we knew there was no big moment for him<” Heppner said. “He just thrives on that stuff. He loves to compete and grind it out. Some days he doesn’t have the swing but it doesn’t matter, he gets us a good score.”

“There’s a lot of schools in Fargo with a lot of great players and if you want to be the best, you have to be the best and that’s what I did last year,” Bartley said.

The future is bright for Crookston golf all three freshman who finished alongside Bartley in the top 25 return next season continuing to build the program to where it was in the early 2000’s winning the NSIC in 2002 and second in 03.

“All three of the freshman came in the same way I did,” Bartley said. “They’ve won tournaments. We’ve all won tournaments. Having done the same things makes us very similar as players.”

“These young guys have someone to look up to and that’s one of the reasons why they’re as good as they are.”