MORGAN COUNTY
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CONTRIBUTED PHOTO -
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
The Morgan County golf team opened the 2023 season at Double Oaks Golf Course in Commerce a couple of weeks ago against East Jackson High School and walked off the ninth hole victorious.
The boys team brought six of its 11 golfers to compete against the Eagles, and head coach Max Gaubert was proud of everyone’s performance in the team’s first match of the year.
“We’re off to a good start, and we’ve got really good senior leadership. Those guys have been leading ever since I took over, and they set the tone at practice,” Gaubert said. “We’ve also got a good amount of young guys on the team as well. I actually traveled three freshmen for that first match, and they’ve all been doing well.”
The Bulldogs’ only two seniors, Colby Brown and Joshua Tamasi, shot a 35 and 38, respectively. Younger guys on the team like Cole Anderson, Drew Eidson, Noah Howell and Trip Jenkins all ended their rounds in the mid-40s.
It was a great start to the season for Morgan County, especially with its golfers who benefitted from short distances into the greens all evening.
Double Oaks’ front nine is just over 3,100 yards and features two manageable par fives. Tamasi took advantage by eagling one of those holes after putting himself in a good position with a long drive off the tee box.
The greens were also rolling well, so the Bulldogs were able to capitalize once they were on. Gaubert acknowledged how the work they’ve been putting in at practice has helped the golfers to score better, especially around the pin.
“The travel squad is constantly changing, so sometimes we’ll have playoffs among the younger guys during the week, and the older guys work a lot on their short game,” Gaubert said. “We try to work from 60 yards out to 120 yards, basically simulating short wedge shots all the way to some approach shots, and once we do that we work on putting. When they play, sometimes I’ll send them off from the tips where we normally play, and sometimes I’ll put them on the red tees just so they can work on that short game.”
The girls team, which is also coached by Gaubert, had a successful outing at Double Oaks as well after scoring lower than East Jackson. Junior Tallie Ray shot the best with a 50, and other Lady Bulldogs followed closely behind her.
The girls have also seen significant improvements since that match.
The team participated in the MOCOtitans Scramble at Hard Labor Creek, which was highlighted by the team combining for an overall score of 75. Lady Bulldogs’ golfer Mia Copelan shot well to contribute to the team’s score, as well as earning closest to the pin honors against the entire field.
Moving forward, Gaubert understands that more work will need to be done, but he believes both teams can make a run in the postseason.
“The plan is to have both Morgan County golf teams going to the state tournament this year. The boys team didn’t make it at all last year, and the girls only had an individual qualify for it,” Gaubert said. “This year, both teams have the skill and desire to make it to the state tournament in Columbus, and that’s what we plan to do.”