Bella Logan
eSomethin Staff
“He’s like a fatherly figure,” said Evan Schuck, a senior who has been golfing for four years, three of which have been under coach Rick Rettig.
Schuck’s memories of Rettig coaching go further back than just golfing. Rettig was his baseball coach years ago, when Schuck was only eight years old.
Schuck says that Rettig has helped improve his game, and is always there to help when a golfer needs it. “No matter if you’re playing good, bad, you can resort back to him.”
Rettig’s golfing wisdom helps him improve each golfer’s strengths, but his wisdom goes even further.
Schuck says that Rettig is always there for him and his teammates in more ways than just on the course. “
If you’re struggling with something else, he will talk about it,” said Schuck.
Amani Baker, a sophomore in his first year on the golf team, agrees that Rettig is more than a golf coach. Baker says that Rettig helped him with his mood and emotions as well as golf.
“He improved my mental state because I had a bad attitude towards golf before, but he was really a pick me up,” Baker said.
Baker’s improvement in the game, and mentality, has led to a love for golf.
He says that “It’s going to be more difficult with a new coach.” Rettig has helped him grow so much on the course and as a person, finding that same relationship with a new coach will be difficult.
Tucker Kregel, a sophomore golfer, also had a positive experience with the coach. Kregel says that “He made me a better golfer. Not only a better golfer, a better person.”
Through helping him with anything he was troubled with, on the course or not, Rettig made an impact on Kregel. He says that Rettig was always able to put a smile on his face, and that “He was just a great guy to be around and have a good time with.”
Years ago, Chip Ebert, the former Perrysburg Athletic Director, came to Rettig and presented the idea of coaching golf to him. Hesitant, he took the position. Without any experience coaching golf, it was a rocky start. The work paid off, and the course was made into a home.
Rettig created a home on the course, a safe space for his golfers to grow and learn, and become the best versions of themselves.
“I was nervous coming into golf. I didn’t know where my game stood. He brought me in and made me feel at home,” Baker said.
Building a safe space for the golfers was an effort made by Rettig. He says he has been calling Perrysburg High School and his golf team home ever since he started teaching and coaching.
“I am always trying to make teams and communities as best I can,” Rettig said. “In the class or golf, you can’t play really well without being relaxed and focused, and realizing you aren’t perfect. If you can do that you can achieve a much more satisfying life.”
Rettig’s favorite aspect about being a teacher and coach is extended family. He loves that his second home provides a comfortable environment for everyone, including himself. He is happy and grateful for the amazing young people he has met through his career.
Rettig’s main goal is seeing his students and golfers succeed and thrive. Rettig said he always asks himself: “If this was my own child how would I help them grow? Sometimes it’s a growing pain, a celebration, or a hug.”
In order to assess how to help push someone in the right direction, he says it is important to realize where they are at in order to see where they are going.
Focusing on how to better himself is always important as well. “How do I get better the next day?” Is what Rettig asks himself each night. Bettering himself is what makes him able to help others succeed.
As a coach and teacher, he is always focused on simply making a difference. “I try to make every one of my decisions on what’s best for the greater good.” Rettig always hopes to make an impact, and to make the environment better for everyone involved.
His choices are always for the betterment of himself and others, but his opportunity to be a coach and a teacher came without him searching. “Teaching chose me, I didn’t choose it.” The same is true for coaching. When the opportunity was presented to him, he took it.
Rettig hopes that retirement opens up new opportunities for him. He is sad to leave behind the place he made home, but knows that there is more to come.
“Find your center. We all have things that make up our axis like one on a globe. Fill your axis with positivity. The world will start rocking you, because that’s what the world does. If you focus on your axis, it will always come back to that center,” Rettig said, leaving some final wisdom for his students and golf family.
Other stories on eSomethin:
- PODCAST: Somethin’ In Session – Fall sports (and play) recap
- Artificial Intelligence continues to impact students and teachers in school
- Girls Tennis Season Ends with Strong Accomplishments
- Video Review: The Starbucks Holiday Menu
- The dark side of an energy drink: overconsumption of highly caffeinated energy drinks can lead to major health risks
