Boys’ golf prepares for future matches

Anthony Young

PUTTING IT IN John Linnane, junior, lines up a birdie putt during practice at Centennial Golf Range. “I’m just hoping to make some progress with my game,” John said.

Reena Alsakaji

In an opener with Lake Central and Highland, the Boy’s Golf team came in second place just last week. 

“We have great talent all around with everyone excited to play,” Blake Siurek, junior, said. “Myself and the rest of my teammates are all thrilled to play golf and proudly represent the school.” 

The boys’ golf team has been practicing everyday, with covid regulations not too much of a struggle this year as golf is an outdoor sport. In early April, the team went through what is known as “Munster Masters,” which determined the top spots for the remainder of the season. 

“Munster Masters (went) great,” Max Ladd, senior, said. “It’s super competitive and fun. We play consecutive rounds of 9 holes against each other and whoever comes out with the lowest score wins.” 

The team has also been preparing for an invitational at Sandy Pines tomorrow—a major tournament with around 20 other teams. 

“Not only is (Sandy Pines) a great event, but (it) is also where our conference tournament is going to be,” Mr. William Smitka, Boys’ Golf coach, said. “I want the guys getting familiar with that course as much as possible, because at the end of May, we have a conference tournament, and then we have sectionals (and then) regionals. That Saturday invite is going to be a big deal for us—to see where we fall, because there are a lot of good teams in the area, to see how we compete against them.”

The outcome of this tournament lays the foundation for the rest of the season, particularly looking at more high-stakes tournaments. Conference for the team is on Tuesday, May 24, and everything the team has done since the beginning of the season is presented here. The season hasn’t been easy in the slightest, especially considering there is only one player with true varsity experience, Max Ladd. However, this is not stopping the team from brimming with confidence. 

“I feel super confident with our team,” Max said. “We got a lot of new talent that I’m eager to see perform under that kind of pressure. Our team is solid this year and we all want to make up for the time we lost last year.”