Taking advantage of high school tournament chances

Sean's team has a few more than a dozen players. From the sounds of it, ~8 players are vying for a spot on the squad that will compete for the high school state championship. Six of these players will compete, two will serve as alternates. The whole season is geared to this goal.

It is fair to say ~4 kids have a spot on that squad locked up. Sean doesn't think he is among these four. He is battling for the 5th or 6th spot with another 3 or 4 other kids.

The team seems to have the talent and the depth where they could make a run at winning the state championship, which would be a big feather in the cap of all involved. Three players return from last year's squad, which finished fifth at 315. The champions shot an even 300.

The coach seems to be doing a good job of giving all a chance to play in matches and tournaments, to post scores and see how they stack up. So when he does get a chance to play an event, Sean goes in knowing that he has to take advantage of the chance, to put up a number.

Sean made a big claim for one of those coveted spots yesterday, posting a four over par 76 to pace the varsity squad, including the locked four, in an event on a tight, hilly course with winds gusting in the 30's. The other scores of his teammates were three 79's and two 80's. Sean's finish was a T5 in a 72 player field.

He's doing a good job of taking advantage of his opportunities to compete in these high school tournaments and matches, putting up numbers that the coaches probably will find hard to overlook. We'll see.

Going into this, his first, high school golf season, I'd read and heard a few things about how the short high school golf team season isn't as important as his summer tournament schedule. Sure, the fields in high school tournaments aren't as deep as those on the regional and national junior golf tours.

But there is a new dynamic I hadn't really anticipated, the intrasquad competition. This grinding to establish a position in the pecking order. It offers an interesting, and refreshing, flavor to the soloist grind of the summer. It is more than the fun and pride of being on a team with some buddies. It is about a season-long competition that hums in the background, where every opportunity to play serves a longer term objective.