Golf coach Monty Gallaher said taking masters courses in sports administration over the summer has changed his approach to coaching.
‘The final score determines a league champion and things like that, but what I’m stressing this year is to just improve,? Gallaher said.
The squad will undoubtedly miss the steady play of all-state performer David Kurtz at the top of their lineup, but the cupboards aren’t exactly bare.
Senior Adam Haddad has already posted some low scores, and Gallaher said Haddad should continue to get better as the season rolls on.
?(Adam) has really fit into the mold of a leader,? Gallaher said. ‘He’s stepped up his game and his maturity level.?
Haddad joins Paul Bobolts, Austin Redick and Logan Schepeler as seniors on the team.
Juniors Andy Bogus, Brett Bryan and Ian Petersen and sophomores Cameron Beeler and Kyle Wesley round out the varsity squad.
The team shot a 304 last Friday at Bald Mountain in the first of two OAA I league tournaments.
But in a tightly compacted tournament, that score was good for seventh place despite being just 13 strokes out of first.
The team has played well in its other early season tournaments, including a fourth place finish at the 18-team Huron Valley Invite at Prestwick (led by Haddad’s 75).
In league matches, the squad is 0-2.
‘My top five or six players have kind of been fluctuating,? the coach said, noting that Haddad and Bogus are entrenched as the top two players so far.
Gallaher added that his players are getting progressively better at course management and the mental preparation needed to make a good golfer.
As a coach, he will judge success on those criteria as opposed to using only scores. Good team scores will be a by-product of individual improvement.
‘As a team 320, is a good score for us,? he added.
Meanwhile, after a top ten in the state a year ago, Clarkston returns as league favorite.
‘They were head and shoulders above everybody in the OAA and I don’t see that changing much,? Gallaher said.
Lahser, which won at Bald Mountian, will also be in the mix.