Highlands’ and Bishop Brossart’s boys golf teams beat Tuesday’s stormy weather.
The Bluebirds and Mustangs beat the rest of the Region 8 field at Eagle Creek Country Club, too. They’ll go to Monday’s state First Round at Shelbyville Country Club.
Highlands won their fifth straight regional trophy and seventh out of the last eight. Nate Surrey, Hank Shick, Oliver Golden and Alex Race combined for a 14-over-par 294.
“I honestly think there’s a little bit of pressure because the whole season leads up to this point,” Surrey said. “I think the guys handled the pressure pretty well; they usually do.”
What Highlands coach Bert Richey does not want to hear is the D-word: Dynasty.
“I don’t know about that,” Richey said. “The kids played well. We play in the toughest tournaments we can play in and have a good schedule to prepare for this day. So I feel like when we come to the regional tournament, we’re real prepared to play well.”
Shick considered Tuesday’s title more enjoyable.
“It was definitely more enjoyable, just with the team that we’ve got and the guys we got,” Shick said. “We always have a good time.”
Shick and Surrey each shot a 1-under 69. Shick’s 15-foot birdie on the first playoff hole gave him the gold medal.
Surrey said Eagle Creek reminded him of Highland Country Club in Fort Thomas – the Bluebirds’ home course.
“Its slope is very similar,” Surrey said. “Highland Country Club is up and down on every hole.”
A six-letter word – strong – pretty much describes Surrey’s round because he birdied three of the first four holes. A little good fortune helped after his tee shot on the par-4 No. 1 went a little left.
“I had a shot in between the trees there, and I hit it to about three or four feet, maybe,” Surrey said.
Shick said his short game, from 100 yards in, was the best part of his round.
“I felt like when I had a wedge in my hand, I was going to have a birdie look, and they happened to fall today,” he said.
Brossart advanced with a 24-over 304. What’s more, the Mustangs advanced for the first time since winning the region in 2016.
“It means a lot to me, especially to able to do it with my seniors (Luke Bertsch, Mitchell Harden, Parker Mulberry and Ethan Martin) this year,” junior Cole Bricking said. “I’m definitely going to miss them a lot. Last year they helped me form into the player that I am today.”
Second-year coach Lonnie Sweeney said the secret was concentrating on one shot at a time and not worrying about results. Last week, a trip to Pinnacle Golf Club in Grove City, Ohio also helped.
“We finished tied for third, and that golf course is really, really tough,” Sweeney said. “Everything we did for that event really carried forward in this event.
Bricking led Brossart with a 3-over 73, Harden carded a 74, Bertsch added a 75, and Mulberry finished with an 82.
Campbell County finished third at 330. Talen Beane, who qualified for the state First Round, led the Camels with a 5-over 75, Jack Hundemer and Bryson Guidugli each shot 80, and Layton Reis and Garrett Roomes both shot a 95.
Beane called his round “not my best.”
“I didn’t really strike the ball good, but was able to scramble around the greens,” Beane said.
Beane played a round at Shelbyville earlier this season; he tied for low score but lost a playoff.
“It’s a goofy course – small greens, tight fairways, I assume it’s going to be firm,” he said. “We’re in a tough semi-state with all the Louisville teams; those kids are some of the best in the state. I’ve got my work cut out.”
Beane had two birdies, but he struggled with the par 3s and his long irons – he thought he bogeyed at least three of five.
“That’s really not like me; I just didn’t hit the ball well,” Beane said. “I was happy with my drives, I wish I could hit my irons a little better, missed some greens I think I shouldn’t have.”