Timothy Lim goes low for Barrington at boys golf state

BARRINGTON — All season long, the Barrington boys golf team succeeded with a unified approach.

Seniors Joey Batliner and Kevin Altenberger, juniors Cole Kempinski and Burke Barsamian and sophomore Tom Calbi were a model of consistency. But as the MSL meet and state series unfolded, one golfer separated himself from the group.

That player was sophomore Timothy Lim.

“Our scoring averages from the conference tournament, to regionals, to state, he’s had our lowest average,” coach Mike Kallenbach said. “He really raised his game.”

The elevation reached a peak Friday and Saturday at the Class 3A state tournament held at The Den at Fox Creek Golf Course in Bloomington.

Lim finished with a two-day score of 150, 6-over par. His Saturday score of 1-over 73 allowed him to climb the leaderboard to sixth place (he tied with five other golfers). Because of Lim’s brilliance and the steady play of the Broncos’ other five players, Barrington’s team finish of 34-over par was good for third place (four shots behind runner-up New Trier and 25 behind champion Hinsdale Central).

It was the school’s highest finish since 1992, when the Broncos won the Class AA state title.

“Quite a historical accomplishment. It’s a legacy they leave well-deserved,” Kallenbach said.

An example of Lim’s growth occurred during Friday’s opening round.

According to Kallenbach, winds were gusting at 30 miles per hour on the golf course. On the challenging par-5 fifth hole, Lim’s third shot rolled into a water hazard. Because the ball was visible, he chose to play his fourth shot from the hazard.

“I had a difficult uphill chip, and it went over the green,” Lim said.

He finished the hole with a triple bogey.

Earlier in the season, the circumstance may have rattled Lim. Not Friday, as he birdied the next two holes.

“I was still kind of mad [after the fifth hole], but I told myself to stay calm and see what happens next, to think about the next shot,” Lim said. “It’s not easy to forget about the bad holes and get yourself together. It took me a while to accomplish that.”

On Saturday, under much better conditions, Lim had the round of his competitive life. How’s this for a clean scorecard? He made twelve pars, five birdies and one bogey. That earned Lim an all-state medal. One indication of the high level of golf played Saturday is this — Lim’s round was still six shots worse than the 67 put up by state champion Kenneth Li of Hinsdale Central.

“He’s a monster,” said Barsamian, who played in Li’s group on Saturday.

Calbi was the Broncos’ next best individual scorer, finishing in a four-way tie for 12th place with a two-day total of 151. Barsamian was one stroke behind Calbi, Kempinski next with a 162, Batliner a 165 and Altenberger a 166.

Four of the six Broncos can return in 2015. While pleased with the school’s best finish in 22 years, Barsamian was not satisfied.

“We didn’t meet our expectations entirely. We have a lot of talent on this team,” Barsamian said. “We have talked about [2015]. Next year, we could give it run.”