They don’t play in the highest classification in Colorado’s high school ranks, but when it comes to shooting stellar scores in the state tournament, golfers from Class 4A don’t take a back seat to anyone.
A year after D’Evelyn’s John Ahern fired a competitive course-record 64 in the first round of the 4A state meet at The Club at Flying Horse, Valor Christian senior Wyndham Clark matched that total on the first day of the 2011 tournament at Pelican Lakes Golf Club in Windsor.
Clark’s 8-under-par score on Monday didn’t break a course record, and it wasn’t shot from the back tees, but any way you cut it, a 64 at Pelican Lakes by a high school player isn’t too shabby.
Clark (pictured above), one of the top 20 junior golfers in the country according to the AJGA rankings, was 6 under par through seven holes, shot 30 on the front nine, and finished with a bogey-free opening day. And as good as it was, he had bigger things in mind.
“I’m a little bummed because I had it going and wanted a really low round,” said Clark, who has won once and placed second twice in his previous state high school appearances. “I was 6 under through seven, then missed a 3-footer for birdie on 8.”
Coming into the day, “I wanted to shoot 10 under, 62,” he added. “I talked to my coach and we kind of made my own par because the course is shorter (6,538 yards) and it’s not playing too tough. We made my own par as 66. And he said, ‘If you played really good what would that number be?’ And I said, ‘Probably 10 under,’ so that was the goal. I fell a little short, but I’m very pleased with the round.”
Clark will take a four-stroke lead into Tuesday’s final round. Dylan Wonnacott and Jack Adolfson, junior teammates at Longmont-based Silver Creek High School, matched 4-under-par 68s to share second place. Wonnacott, who had never shot that low of a score in a high school tournament, fired a 5-under 31 on the front nine, and Adolfson carded a 32.
Four players are tied for third place at 70 — Nick Reisch of Broomfield, Kyle Peterson of Evergreen, Kolten Kyne of Montrose and Dylan Mitchell of Summit.
In the team competition, Silver Creek got a leg up in trying to unseat two-time defending champion Valor Christian. With three players shooting sub-par scores, Silver Creek posted one of the lowest team totals in state tournament history, a 9-under-par 207. That gives the Raptors an eight-stroke advantage over Valor.
“Coming in, we’ve been hearing a lot about Valor, so we just wanted to prove that Silver Creek can play too,” Adolfson said.
Individually, fellow players know it certainly won’t be easy to catch Clark, especially when he has a big lead. After all, this is a golfer who won the CGA Stroke Play Championship at age 16 last year, and who has qualified for the last two U.S. Amateurs.
Clark has verbally committed to play college golf for perennial national powerhouse Oklahoma State.
Competing against Clark “is motivation,” said Wonnacott (pictured at left), who birdied his last two holes Monday. “You know he’s going to play well, so it makes you want to play better. It’s hard to keep up with people who make that many birdies and can score that well. But that’s motivation for our team.”
On Monday, Clark made a statement early on, making a 12-foot birdie on No. 1 and a 12-foot eagle on No. 2, where he hit an 8-iron approach from 185 yards to set himself up. And though he cooled off later in the round, he never was in serious danger of making a bogey as he pitched the ball closed all three times he missed a green in regulation.
“I’m excited for tomorrow,” Clark said. “I think I can go shoot another really good low round and beat the score I shot today.”
Asked if the lead he has figures into his mindset, Clark said, “I’m not thinking about it. I’m going to try to shoot the lowest score I can. I shot 30 on the front nine today, and I’m going to try to shoot 29 or 28 (Tuesday). I’m going to tryi to get my 8 under and go to 10, then from 10 go to 14 — go as low as I can go.”
Clark is attempting to become the ninth player in Colorado history to win two boys state high school titles.
“It’s a big deal for me,” he said. “I definitely want to win. I kind of want to stay in the present, and winning this is huge at the moment. Obviously I’ve won bigger tournaments and done bigger things, but every tournament to me is big. I want to win everything.
Winning twice would be “up there,” Clark added. “It’s unfortunate it’s not three or four.”
The leaders will tee off for Tuesday’s final round at 10:27 a.m.
Mitchell, Gayeski Share Lead in 5A: Quade Mitchell of ThunderRidge and Brandon Gayeski of Mountain Range fired 2-under-par 69s and share the lead after Monday’s first round of the Class 5A state tournament at Bookcliff Country Club in Grand Junction.
Mitchell and Gayeski were the only players to break par, though five golfers shot even-par 71s: Eric Hallberg of Highlands Ranch, Cole Cunningham of Regis, Drew Vance of Dakota Ridge, Jack Pederson of Ralston Valley and Palmer Giro of Fort Collins.
Mitchell made three birdies and one bogey on Monday, while Gayeski carded five birdies and three bogeys.
In the team competition, Highlands Ranch shot a 6-over-par 219 and leads by one over Cherry Creek and by two over defending champion Regis and ThunderRidge.
Dawson’s Nygren Up By 3 in Class 3A: Alexander Dawson’s Cole Nygren, who won an AJGA title in Aspen earlier this year, shot a 4-under-par 67 on Monday to take a three-stroke lead in the Class 3A state tournament at Dos Rios Golf Club in Gunnison.
Nygren made an eagle and six birdies, offset by four bogeys, in the opening round.
Defending champion Ethan Freeman of Kent Denver, along with Eaton’s Jake Ice and Rye’s Tyler Harrison, share second place at 70 going into Tuesday’s final round.
Kent Denver, which is seeking to match the longest streak of consecutive boys state high school championships in Colorado history (six), holds a three-stroke advantage over Alexander Dawson after one round of the team competition.
Kent Denver won 4A state titles in 2006 and 2007, and 3A championships every year since the classification debuted in 2008.
