In the words of professional golfer Kevin Kisner, “Team golf ain’t no hobby.” For the boys of St. Louis U. High golf, these words of wisdom are a reality. Following last Monday’s tournament win at Winghaven Country Club, the golf team continued their run of dominance this past week, beating 21 teams. Last Thursday, the Jr. Bills took care of business against Jesuit rival De Smet before preparing for the Webster Cup on Monday and Westminster on Wednesday. With green grass in their veins and trophies on their mind, the Jr. Bills won the Webster Cup by 8 strokes and beat Westminster by 22 on Wednesday.

Against De Smet, the Jr. Bills won by a score of 222-232. Junior Louis Cornett led the way with a 35, followed closely by junior Thomas Ziegler and senior Alex Tarlas, who both shot 36. The match was played on Redbud at Forest Park, a preview of where districts will be played on May 10. 

“I was very pleased with the way we played against De Smet,” said head coach Dan Reardon. “I consider them a good team, not as deep as we are and we added a new reliable score in Alex Tarlas, making us even deeper.”

After the match against the Spartans, the Jr. Bills had Friday and the weekend off to prepare for the Webster Cup at Crescent Farms on Monday. Consisting of 20 teams and 100 players, the Jr. Bills were facing a difficult task, trying to win their second tournament in a row. Among the tough competition was Chamiande, CBC, De Smet, and Marquette. Reardon selected the same team that sizzled at Winghaven—juniors Cornett, Sam Orlando, and Ziegler as well as seniors Perotti and Sussman—and they came through with a score of 303. 

“I worried that the golf course was not a good fit for us with all the water,” said Reardon. “The golf course does not play in straight lines, it turns a lot. The combination of successfully navigating the course and being the best in the field is progress for our team.”
The day of the tournament was picture perfect, with temperatures in the 70s. However, a chilly morning caused mild discomfort for the players teeing off early. Braving the high 40, Cornett was the first to tee off at 8:00. He eagled the second hole he played but stumbled on the greens with three-putts on holes 4 and 8. He finished his front 9 at even, but sputtered on the back, bogeying 13 through 15. Cornett finished with a three-over 75 and tied for 6th overall.

 Perotti followed Cornett off at 8:45 and provided his best tournament round of the year with a four-over 76, which was good enough to tie for 9th place. 

Sussman sent shock waves through the sparse galleries with his explosive play.

 One deep through his first 12 holes, the captain was ripping d-stick, taking advantage of the narrow fairways with precise tee shots. Slipping a little on the back nine, Sussman finished with a one-over 73, a masterful performance which earned him a tie for third place.

“I wasn’t hitting the ball particularly well,” said Sussman. “But when I gave myself opportunities for birdie, I took advantage and I scrambled well. I was a little disappointed with my score on the last six holes, but overall, I was happy with the overall score.”
Ziegler tied for 14th with a five-over 77 and Orlando struggled on the back nine before rebounding with a solid front and finished with an 81 which tied him for 30th. 

With four players once again in the 70s, the Jr. Bills waved to their opponents in the rearview mirror of the victory bus. A combined score of 301 gave the Jr. Bills their best tournament score of the year and an 8-stroke win over second place CBC.

“100 percent, this was a statement win,” said Sussman. “However, there is still some left in the tank. We have been playing well but we need to keep putting our heads down and working because there are improvements to be made. We should not be comfortable here because the competition will be tougher as we will compete at Districts and at State.”

After a thrilling performance, the Jr. Bills looked to turn their momentum into another solid performance the following day against Westminster. However, the match was postponed due to snow and played this past Wednesday.

“I think that the test at Creve Couer is that the greens are fast,” said Reardon. “That has been a problem for us on the Varsity and I like how we are being put under the gun there.”

 In windy and rainy conditions, the Jr. Bills struggled on a tough Creve Coeur course and their quick greens. However, their struggles were still much better than the futile attempts of Westminster and SLUH prevailed with a score of 246-268, a substantial margin.

The Jr. Bills look ahead to the Lake Forest Invitational on Monday, where they will send four players to try and capture their third consecutive trophy.

“Over the last two weeks, 41 schools have tried to beat us and none of them have,” said Reardon. “The closest any team has come is six strokes. Regardless of what we do the rest of the year, it has been a very impressive stretch.”