Golf has been the perfect sport for social distancing and was able to carry out a somewhat normal season this year. The golf season kicked back this year from a rough cancellation of the season last year with new players and coaches. 

Both golf teams did well and had fun during the season this year. Jake Yim was the number one varsity athlete on the boys team and his best score was a 67. Maddie Baker was the number one athlete on the girls team. Shethe district tournament at Stone Creek. On the JV girls side, Libby Emory won a tournament with a 49. 

District champion Baker was a senior on the golf team this year. 

“My favorite part about golf was my team. It was fun being able to golf with them and grow closer as a team,” said Baker. The team dinners after tournaments was a big part of the bonding because there weren’t a lot of other options due to Covid.

“Covid changed when our season started so we played later in the year and there were some really hot tournaments,” Baker said. Being an outdoor sport, golf is easier to follow the restrictions of Covid to be safe and still have a season. 

Most golfers agreed that Covid wasn’t as much of a barrier as the last year, when the shutdown canceled the season after just a few weeks.

This year, the girls team had new players, expanding the team to a full varsity and jv team with five on each. The team also had three seniors that helped newer players as well as the new coach that helped the team out. 

For the girls team, the athletes were in search of a new coach because the previous, Tess, had gone on maternity leave and was busy with her new kid. The school hired a replacement, Nelson Neal, to run practice and help during the tournaments. On the Lakeridge golf team, the coaches were confidently able to say that every player improved in their game and overall as a team. 

Abby Winston, a sophomore at Lakeridge, joined the team this year. 

“I really liked playing at Stone Creek, and I definitely improved a little bit,” said Winston. The girls team would agree that it’s a relaxed sport, as well as the practices. This is a positive because of how mentally tough golf can be, and having encouragement and fun is the most important part. 

“I liked golf because it’s an individual sport, where the overall goal is self improvement, yet you still have a strong sense of teamwork because of the friendly nature of the sport. I felt I improved in my game and in my mentality throughout the season,” said sophomore Kate Kohsntamm, who is also a new member of the team.

Self improvement was one of my goals being on the team, which I definitely achieved because I ended up shooting my best scores and improving throughout every tournament, whether it was by 20 strokes or just a few. Everyone wished the season would have lasted longer like usual, but it was still a great year for everyone on both teams and a great place to bond with others.