Golf season starts with first tournaments

The Plains/Hot Springs golf team is preparing for the first full team tournament in Bigfork on April 11. The tournament will be the first time Coach Magera will have his entire team on the course.

Dallas Burgess was the sole representative from the golf team at the last event held in Missoula. Burgess shot an 84 on the first day at the Larchmont Golf Course and an 83 on the second day at the Missoula Country Club.

Magera said, ”He did well considering the conditions. It was cold and you are never very loose when it’s cold.”

The next tournament could prove to be a challenge for the young team. The event in Bigfork on April 11 will take place at a course designed by the legendary golfer Jack Nicklaus. Nicklaus won 18 major championships before becoming involved in golf course design.

According to Magera, “It’s a championship course. There are a lot of elevation drops. Lots of bunkers and lots of water. You never know how the kids are going to do on a course like that. Sometimes they do better on the tougher courses. Golf is a temperamental game even for the pros. One day you do great, the next day you struggle.”

Plains will host their own tournament on April 20 starting at 9:30 a.m.

The Bluehawks golf team competed at the Loyola Invitational on April 4 and 5, pulling in fourth out of 11 schools.

“I was pretty pleased with what went on, “ said Head Coach Gary Thompson.

Ross Dalby led the team with a two-day total of 174. Dalton Hotten had 179, Tyler Bates had 181, Caleb Bates had 193 and Jacob Smith had 213.

Bates and Smith both had never participated in a tournament before.

The final score for the Bluehawks was 361.

On Thursday the team will go to Bigfork and are hoping to finish in the top three.

The Bigfork Invitational will have less teams than the Loyola Invitational and has more divisional teams in the tournament.