Junior Preston Bruce watches where his ball lands during practice Thursday night. Photo by Jack Denebeim." />
Junior Preston Bruce watches where his ball lands during practice Thursday night. Photo by Jack Denebeim.
The Cardinals boys golf team has entered league play with high hopes in their fourth year as a program.
“The team has been coming along nicely,” head coach Susan De Voe said. “We had two boys come over from baseball for their senior year. They are raw, but because they are athletic, they are doing good for their first year with the team.”
The Cardinals are led by sophomore Ty Deterding, who has won a tournament already this season, along with a sixth and eighth place finish.
The rest of the team is relatively young, including sophomore varsity golfer Mason Harding.
Harding picked up the game of golf this year and made varsity. Harding joined instead of doing track this year to connect with his grandfather.
“Everything has gotten better and better. I have learned a whole lot in my short time on the team,” Harding said.
Harding said he has competed in about five tournaments so far this season, getting better with each one. In his last tournament at Jefferson West, he shot his best score on the season with a 107.
Junior Jonah Pratt is in his second year with the team. After playing as a freshman, he took a year off because he did not know if he could balance his job at the recreation center along with practice.
But this year he has come back and is playing with his brother Henry, a freshman on the junior varsity team.
“Golf is a life skill to have and is something you can always get better at. When you are older, you can play golf more compared to other sports,” Pratt said.
Pratt’s scores have varied this year, between 115-130 with a 117 at his most recent round.
The Cardinals are in their fourth season while the girls team finished their third year in the fall. Due to this, the boys team will not have to fundraise after this season, and girls won’t have to after next season.
“We will be fully funded after next year,” De Voe said.
De Voe and assistant coach Scott Keltner have built the program from its foundation because of their love and passion for golf.
“I love golf, and I am reasonably decent. I know enough to get them around and Mr. Scott Keltner played college golf,” De Voe said.
Meanwhile, Keltner’s experience in golf has made him a valuable asset since he started coaching last spring. Keltner played golf in high school and at Cowley Community College in Arkansas City, Kansas.
“I had a great golf coach in high school where I transitioned from baseball to golf,” Keltner said. “We were team state champions junior year, and I like the longevity of learning the game at that point in my life because you do not need to grab nine guys for golf. You can play at a lot of places with a lot of people for a significant part of your lifespan.”
The Cardinals have two more tournaments before regionals. The first is a varsity tournament on May 1 at Lake Shawnee Golf Course in Topeka where six players will be competing.
On Wednesday, three players will compete in an all-day tournament at Bellevue Country Club in Atchison.
Regionals are May 15 at Holton Country Club in Holton.
Reach reporter Nate Clark at [email protected]
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