By Ethan Wood
While golf is one of the most prominent activities in the world, it comes as a surprise to some that Ouray High School has a golf team. It is small but proud, consisting of two seniors, Charlie Tyler and Hayden Hart, who spend two to three days a week in Montrose and Ridgway honing their skills.
At the regional tournament September 20 and 21, both boys had their hearts set on playing well enough to earn a place at state competition. Hayden succeeded, and Charlie just barely missed the cut-off. He was disappointed not to qualify for state, but felt that he understood his error: that he “mainly focused on the end result instead of the process.”
Hayden shot, he said, an “even par 72” which earned him “third place” at regionals, three strokes out of first place. After having spent “a full month” worrying about how he would play, he said, Hayden was able to “get my mind right and execute at the right time.” Based on his result at the regional tournament Hayden will be competing in the state tournament in Elizabeth, Colorado, on October 3-5.
Since all the golf meets demanded school day travel, the students missed a lot of school over the fall, but they both agreed the sacrifice was worth it. Hayden mused, “it’s always nice to be on the golf course and be thinking about the classes you are not taking right now.”