Brother Rice senior Lorenzo Pinili shines at state finals

BLOOMFIELD HILLS — Michigan State University’s men’s golf program is getting a good one in Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice senior Lorenzo Pinili.

Leading Brother Rice to back-to-back state and regional championships in 2021 and 2022, and earning back-to-back individual regional championships the past two seasons, Pinili had one more piece of hardware left to secure before heading off to East Lansing — an individual state title.

“We actually just texted today, and I just recall he and I texting back and forth last October and I said, ‘hey, this is the goal for you,’ and we talked about it a lot,” Brother Rice assistant coach David Sass said. “I’m really happy he was able to accomplish it, because I know it was something that was really near and dear to him.”

On June 10 at The Fortress in Frankenmuth, Pinili, a Michigan State University commit, had one of the best state finals rounds you’ll see on the high school stage, shooting a 64 and 70, respectively, to win the Michigan High School Athletic Association Division 2 Individual State Championship by seven strokes. Pinili’s score of 64 tied the record for the lowest score at the Division 2 state finals.

“He couldn’t miss,” Sass said. “Obviously, he had two bogeys, so he could miss, but I tell you what, that could have easily been a 62 or 63.”

To be expected from Pinili’s impressive round on the course, the driver and irons were working for him all day long.

While Pinili was successful in all phases of his physical game, it was the mental part he felt was strongest for him over the weekend.

“I put a lot of preparation into my game before that, so it just gave me a ton of confidence in what I knew I could do,” Pinili said. “With that confidence, I knew all I had to do was trust myself, let my game do the work, and not worry about anything else. I think it’s better when you don’t have to worry about performing, when you can just be in the moment and focus on one shot at a time.”

A staple of Brother Rice golf the past three seasons, Pinili currently ranks second in the state and 157th overall, according to the American Junior Golf Association.

It will be a key senior void to fill alongside senior Marcus Lee, who finished sixth with a two-day score of 148 at the state finals this year, but Brother Rice’s crop of young talent can hang with the best of them.

Junior Ben Yono will lead the veteran group alongside sophomore Leandro Pinili, Lorenzo’s younger brother.

Lorenzo and Leandro were able to team up to help win Brother Rice a state title last season, and as Pinili departs for collegiate golf, he said that’s a memory that will live with him forever.

“Just able to play on a team with him is something,” Pinili said. “I played with him for two years, and who knows what will happen in the future. Maybe he’ll come to Michigan State with me, but those two years playing with each other might be the only two years I have with him on a team. It’s really special.”