Wolverines hold onto fourthplace in the region golf tournaments
At the conclusion of half of the region tournaments the Hunter Golf team has placed fourth in every tournament thus far.
For the most part, the team is made up of returning golfers. Austin Farnsworth holds the No. 1 player spot for the team this year with a low score of 74 at the Glendale Tournament.
Representing the senior class at the varsity level are Farnsworth, Jared Hancock, Mike Peters and Erik Funnye. These boys have played golf all four years of high school, and they represent the top four players on the team. Junior Reid Mackey also contributes to the varsity team.
The next top three players this year are Juniors Austin Bean, Curtis Ellefsen and Paxson Hightower.
The JV team finished third in the JV Golf tournament held at Lakeside Golf Tournament on Aug. 30. Reid Mackay was the low scorer that day. Other JV players are sophomores Landon McCleary, Braden Delamare and Hayden Roth, and Freshmen Nash Masock, Jackson Brock, Gerrit Gerritsen and Jesse Lee.
Golf is a quick season for these boys. Region tournaments started in August, and the state tournament will be held Oct. 5 and 6 at Talons Cove. Because of the short season the golfers are encouraged to play as much as they can in the offseason during the spring and summer months.
Hunter head golf coach Kevin Christensen spoke frankly in the end of the season review for last year’s golf season when he explained that the budget cuts would make it hard to keep as many players on the course for the 2011-2012 season. The coach strongly encouraged offseason practice in order to make the team this year.
“Our goal is to finish in the top three in the region this season,” Christensen said. “Overall, each player has improved in all areas of the game this year. They made a point to play in the offseason, and it has made a difference.”
The top four teams in the region qualify for the state tournament. Currently, the Wolverines are in position to go to state as a team just shy of their goal to be third in the region. The 2003 season marked Hunter’s highest team finish at state where they took 11th place.
The region tournaments will conclude at the Wasatch Tournament on Monday, Sept. 26.
