Polson boys, girls golf finishs big at state match

The Polson Pirates golf team’s quest for a state title came up only 17 strokes short against Hamilton Friday and Saturday at the Hamilton Golf Club.

Aided by the home course advantage, the Hamilton boys two-day score of 637 was enough to capture the Montana State golf championship. Despite a second day surge, the Pirates boys couldn’t make up the first day difference firing a 651 and placing second overall in the state tournament.

“My kids all stepped up and did what we needed to them to do,” Pirates’ Coach Bill Owen said. “We did well the second day. Noah McDonalds came and matched his personal best for the season to put us where we were. There is no way we could have gotten to second place in the state tournament without players shooting their personal best and he did a great job.”

Owen said he saw some bright spots in the future of Pirates’ golf in the performance of his No. 1 player Carson McDaniel.

McDaniel finished third overall and was an All-State medalist, firing a 157 on his two days. McDaniel said the Hamilton players having their own course really changed the dynamic of the tournament and gave them quite an advantage.

“That kid had his own course and he was in a pretty comfortable position compared to the rest of the field,” Owen said. “On a neutral course, it would be an equalizer. It would be tight. We are both legitimate threats (to win state) and the home course advantage helped them a ton.”

Though the home course advantage helped Hamilton’s Max Toenjes win the state title, Owen didn’t deny his skill set.

During the course of the season, Toenjes and McDaniel went toe-to-toe with each other in several battles.

“That kid is a heck of a player and I don’t want to take anything away from him in the state tournament environment,” Owen said. “He would have been tough to beat even on a neutral course. Believe me, that kid is legit.”

When the Pirates fell 14 strokes behind Hamilton at the first day, Owen said he was “concerned.”

“I had a feeling we were in trouble after that first day and I was hoping we could hang in there a little closer,” Owen said.

Despite being 14 strokes behind, Owen said he felt the team continued to “battle.”

“When we were 14 strokes behind and we made up three the next day, Hamilton was just too far out in front the first day,” Owen said. “I knew the second day was going to be our long shot. We took a run at it. Our team hung in there and made it a battle. I think we would have been able to put more pressure on Hamilton and could have made the battle a little tougher. It took a lot of pressure off them when you think of the kind of lead they had.”

Pirates girls take fifth

Polson Pirates’ Coach Bill Owen emphasized looking into the future with his girls capturing fifth in the state.

“I am actually just as excited for what the girls did as what the boys did, and the advancement the girls made over the course of the season made it a lot more fun,” Owen said. “They were in 6th place the first day, moved up to fifth and held it together for two days. It was kind of cool they actually improved their position on the scoring board.”

Owen attributes the Pirates’ success to their basic philosophical approach at state: “just play.”

“I didn’t talk about the state tournament, we just went out and played,” Owen said. “The less pressure and the less dwelling on it we did, we just went out there, played, and did our best. We performed well when we did that.”

Owen attributes the play of his senior leader and golfer Kiraya McCue for helping the younger golf team that only had four players.

“Those girls worked hard and improved throughout the season,” Owen said. “Kiraya was a good leader for us this year, and leadership is a big part of teams and developing team chemistry. She was a great senior leader and really good to the other kids (during the course of the year).”

Owen said he was particularly proud of his team’s performance.

“We went to state, we hung around and kept producing and getting better, and I was really impressed (with our performance),” Owen said. “We played steady and they stayed excited on what they were doing. I sure look for us to keep improving.”

Owen is focused on getting his Pirates back to the state-contending and championship team that won three-consecutive titles in 2010-2013.

Owen has three golfers: Amanda Farley, Calli Cannon, and Esme Yarbrough.

“We have to start the rebuilding process and that is what we are doing,” Owen said. “These three girls are really into working at it and wanting to get better.”

Whether the girls come back next year and compete for a state title will be a numbers game, according to Owen.“It really hedges on whether we can get those other two players,” Owen said. “If we have five girls on that course next year, we are going to compete and be in the run for a trophy. If they really work at it in the off season, we should step into next year with a really improved squad with some potential to win a trophy.”