Ramstein sophomore Michael Schmiedel celebrates after finishing the second round of the 2025 DODEA European golf championships on the No. 9 hole on Oct. 17, 2025, at Woodlawn Golf Course on Ramstein Air Base, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)
RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany – Generally stoic on the course, Michael Schmiedel let his guard down on the final hole of the 2025 DODEA European golf championships Friday.
The Ramstein sophomore sunk a par putt on Woodlawn Golf Course’s No. 9 hole, capping off a dominating individual performance that gave him the boys individual championship with a total of 80 points with the modified Stableford scoring system.
Schmiedel celebrated by raising both arms in the air, his putter in his left hand and his right hand holding up his index finger signaling No. 1.
“(Teammate) Tyler Hacker gave me a great read,” Schmiedel said. “I just gave it some good pace and right line, hoping it would drop, and very grateful that it did.”
Schmiedel had more than one reason to salute the performance.
Not only did he become the third-straight Royal to bring home the individual boys crown, but he also helped Ramstein to its fifth consecutive team title.
The Royals totaled 206 points via their top three performers – Schmiedel, Hacker (second place, 71 points) and Nolan Schmidt (sixth, 55).
Kaiserslautern took second with 150, while Wiesbaden placed third with 135.
“It means the world seeing the team happy, seeing the team win and just coming together,” Hacker, a senior, said. “Being able at the end of the day to lift the trophy and going, ‘We won, we beat everybody,’ is special.”
Ramstein’s Michael Schmiedel putts on the No. 8 green during the second day of the 2025 DODEA European golf championships on Oct. 17, 2025, at Woodlawn Golf Course on Ramstein Air Base, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)
Ramstein senior Tyler Hacker chips onto the No. 16 green during the second day of the 2025 DODEA European golf championships on Oct. 17, 2025, at Woodlawn Golf Course on Ramstein Air Base, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)
Lakenheath’s Tyler Korell tees off on the No. 2 hole during the second day of the 2025 DODEA European golf championships on Oct. 17, 2025, at Woodlawn Golf Course on Ramstein Air Base, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)
Kaiserslautern’s Josh Otto hits out of the wood on the No. 16 hole during the second day of the 2025 DODEA European golf championships on Oct. 17, 2025, at Woodlawn Golf Course on Ramstein Air Base, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)
Ramstein’s Nolan Schmidt follows his shot out of the woods on the No. 2 hole during the second day of the 2025 DODEA European golf championships on Oct. 17, 2025, at Woodlawn Golf Course on Ramstein Air Base, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)
Ramstein’s Tyler Hacker putts on the No. 7 green during the second day of the 2025 DODEA European golf championships on Oct. 17, 2025, at Woodlawn Golf Course on Ramstein Air Base, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)
Friday, Schmiedel and Hacker ran the show.
Hacker trailed his sophomore teammate by seven points heading into the second and final round. The senior produced a 40-point performance, recording seven pars with four coming on the back nine.
Yet Schmiedel bettered him. The sophomore totaled 42 points, parring 11 holes – including seven of the first nine holes.
Schmiedel and Hacker had two of the three best scores on the day. Lakenheath sophomore Tyler Korell bounced back with a 41 in the second round to give him a two-day total of 66, leapfrogging into fourth place.
“When you have kids of that caliber, it’s a lot of fun to be with them and work with them,” Ramstein coach Greg Hewitt said of the Royals’ aces. “They each challenge each other.”
Schmiedel credited Hacker with helping him get through the nerves in the early going.
The champion entered the day with just a one-point lead over Wiesbaden’s Gunner Blackmon. By the end of the back nine, that advantage had stretched out to nine points, and Schmiedel never looked back.
“I was putting too much energy into (the lead) instead of focusing on my game,” Schmiedel said. “After my first nine today, I really just stretched it out and I could finally relax, settle in and play my own game.”
Blackmon said he couldn’t execute as well on the second day, but the senior didn’t complain about coming in third over two days.
“I think my performance on Day 1 was really good,” Blackmon said. “But it wasn’t all connecting today.
“I fell short, but it was fine. The past two years have been fun, playing DODEA golf.”
The Royals, meanwhile, already can turn to next season as they seek to extend their dynasty.
They’ll lose Hacker, but Schmiedel will return and already expressed his intention to improve his game. And he expects to get some help.
“We’ve got some young players that have a lot of potential,” Hewitt said. “We’ve got some strength coming.
“The future looks really bright, and it’s exciting to be here at Ramstein.”
