Conway takes boys’ 7A golf state title
Posted on Wednesday, October 8, 2008
BENJAMIN KRAIN Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Fayetteville High School’s Eli Mattioli hits from the fairway of the 18 th hole at Cypress Golf Course during the boys state 7 A golf tournament Tuesday in Cabot.
CABOT - Hunter Smith struggled with his putter on Tuesday, but the Cabot sophomore had no trouble reaching the greens.
Smith hit 15 of 18 greens in regulation and captured medalist honors at the 7 A boys state golf tournament by two strokes on the Cypress Creek Golf Course.
Fayetteville's Eli Mattioli finished seventh in the individual standings to pace the Bulldogs with a third place finish in the team standings.
"I hit 32 putts, and that's a little much," Smith said. "I just could not get any putts to go in today."
Poor putting withstanding, Smith's even-par round of 72 was tops on a day that featured strong winds and fast greens. Tournament officials admitted that Tuesday's conditions on the 6, 820-yard course were much more difficult than when the course hosted the 7 A-Central tournament two weeks ago.
Heavy rains on Monday night and Tuesday morning also did the players no favors.
"When we played conference here, the greens were really slow," said Conway junior Ethan King, who finished as the runner-up with a 2-over-par 74.
"Then we came out here today and they were really fast. It was like a totally different course."
Smith, King and Fort Smith Southside freshman Drew Comer will represent the 7 A in next week's Overall tournament at Pleasant Valley Country Club in Little Rock. Comer defeated Conway senior Chris Stalnaker in a one-hole playoff to determine the third-place spot. Both Comer and Stalnaker completed the regulation 18 holes with 75 s.
Conway, which finished third in the conference tournament, took home the team title with a 307. Cabot finished second with a 310.
FEEDBACK:
Something to say about this topic? Submit a Letter to the Editor online
