Last week was a hard week for Stratford Golf. The Varsity Team and Thomas Thielemann battled at Eagle Pointe Golf Course in the Regional Tournament. The team finished 5th overall, shooting 611 and missing the State Tournament by 8 shots. The course was in less-than-ideal conditions for play, and the wind caused many teams to falter on the back nine holes.

As the team turned to the back nine, we were one or two shots back from 2nd place. As we continued to play the back nine, the wind gusts reached 20 to 25 mph, which caused many balls to fall into less-than-ideal positions. This resulted in some late bogeys that took us out of contention for the State Tournament. Andrew Molina, however, had a steady back nine, forcing a four-way playoff for a medalist position. On the second playoff hole, Andrew hit a usual drive into the woods, which forced him to play a layup shot back into the fairway. This error opened the door for his competitor to make a great shot and close out the playoff.

I am extremely proud of all the boys for advancing to the Regional Tournament. This group of boys has advanced to the State Tournament two years in a row! I told the team that most teams only get to advance to the State Tournament once while in high school. For this reason, I told the team to be very proud of their accomplishments and to look forward to next season. (The seniors will be looking forward to starting a new chapter in their golf experiences outside of high school.)