The P-Town Classic: 'It's all about Polson'

The inaugural P-Town Classic, an alumni and faculty golf scramble held last Saturday, drew 81 golfers to Polson Bay Golf Course and raised $1,500 for the Polson Booster Club.

“Fun was name of game,” said organizer Kris McKethen (Polson High Class of ’93). In order to keep the course challenging, they seasoned it with a few obstacles, including hitting a marshmallow on the no. 4 hole and putting with a hockey stick on no. 18.

Jason Denton, a member of McKethen’s team, described the marshmallow challenge as “brutal.”

“My marshmallow exploded because I hit it too hard,” he said.

“We wanted to build competition between classes,” McKethen said of the strategy. “We had a lot of people talking trash, so that was cool.”

McKethen’s dad, Joe, coached basketball and golf, and his mom, Dede, taught in Polson for many years.

Kris and Neal Smith, who golfed together Saturday with ’93 alums Denton and Graham Ramsey, were part of the State A championship basketball team in 1993. “Sports has kind of kept us all together,” McKethen said.

He floated a trial run of the P-Town Classic last year with just four groups. “We had a blast and I kind of pitched it to everybody that I wanted to put this together,” he said. “I had a lot of good help.”

Originally, they anticipated around 40 players, “but then Dad started getting involved,” and by Saturday, the number of enrollees had more than doubled. The roster included grads from 1971 to 2024, as well as two teams of faculty members ranging from the 1970s to the early 2000s.

The Class of ’94 girls basketball squad, which took second at state that year, put together the only all-women team in the tourney. “So next year, we need more people, and more girls,” McKethen said.

After the tourney, players gathered at the Elks Club for pizza and awards.

The Class of 2024 (Hunter Emerson, Torin Ellis, Carson Hupka and Otto Lund) won with a net score of 68 in a “sudden death” putting match at the Elks. The mixed-class winners were Brad Pluff, Derick Pluff, Vern Hewankorn and Judy Hewankorn.

Darry Dupuis (PHS Class of 1953) was honored “for all of his time spent teaching and coaching in Polson.” Darry’s son, Gary, and grandson, Tyler, also participated in Saturday’s event.

According to Gary, his dad taught and coached in Polson until 1976 and retired as principal in 1995. Darry, who turns 90 in November, was part of the tourney too, although he mostly chips and putts these days. “But he’s still out there moving,” Gary said.

McKethen was delighted with the turnout and enthusiasm the P-Town Classic generated, and for the opportunity to connect with classmates and faculty who all have at least one thing in common.

“It’s all about Polson,” he said. “A lot of us were blessed with really great coaches and teachers and we had a lot of great role models.”

    Kris McKethen, organizer of the P-Town Classic, hands Polson alum and PHS Principal Andy Fohrs a check for $1,500 at the close of this year's inaugural alumnus, faculty golf scramble.