NOW FOR SOMETHING completely different.
No, despite my opening line, this column won’t touch on the Knights that say Ni! or anything else from the Monty Python canon.
I’m talking instead about high school golf previews, which haven’t graced the pages of the Peninsula Daily News in many years, if ever.
For some time there has been a wealth of talented high school golfers here on the North Olympic Peninsula and this year is no exception.
This week I will be a gentleman and lead off with information on lady golfers from the Port Angeles, Port Townsend and Sequim High School golf teams.
Boys previews from those schools plus Chimacum will follow in next week’s column.
Port Angeles Roughriders
What better place to start than with the two-time defending Olympic League champion Port Angeles Roughriders?
The Rider girls haven’t dropped an Olympic League match in those two championship seasons and sent three golfers, all of whom return this year as seniors, to last year’s Class 3A state tournament at Horn Rapids Golf Course in Richland.
Tracie DuPuis has made two state tournament appearances and will captain the team this year.
Emily Cook qualified for the state meet last year but an injury will keep her from her clubs until April.
EV Grier is the team’s No. 3 and finished the highest of the trio at state last year.
Senior Lauren Coventon, who narrowly missed her own state berth last year, junior Analis Pena, who played as a freshman but took last year off, junior Madison Bauman and sophomore D’Arcy Depew round out the squad.
The team’s biggest strength is their experience and biggest weakness is polishing up a bit of rust after the Riders “just picked up our clubs and haven’t played in a while,” according to Port Angeles coach Mike DuPuis.
He’s talked with his charges about staying focused for nine holes with a goal of going undefeated on the season.
DuPuis singled out White Horse Golf Course in Kingston as the most interesting course his team will play that is located off the North Olympic Peninsula.
Port Angeles has never competed at that course.
Sequim Wolves
Last alphabetically but first on the leaderboard is the typical story for Sequim High School No. 1 golfer Zoei Zbaraschuk.
A senior, Zbaraschuk outplayed her competition last year, taking home medalist honors in all matches and winning her second straight Olympic League girls golf MVP award.
She also won the Class 2A Bi-District Tournament for the second time in three years and finished ninth at the Class 2A State Tournament at Yakima’s famous Apple Tree Golf Course.
An individual state title is not out of the realm of possibility for her.
Sequim, however, is not a one-woman team.
Junior Kim Duce has made state appearances in her first two years of high school golf and Duce will be joined by classmate Lisa Doan at No. 3 and sophomore Hailey Estes at No. 4.
Newcomers to the team are senior Ashley Morton and sophomore Loretta Creasey.
The team has some lofty goals this season: an Olympic League title and qualifying four players for the state tournament.
Four-player teams can compete for a team state championship.
“We have a chance to win the Olympic League,” Sequim high school coach and Cedars at Dungeness assistant golf pro Garrett Smithson said.
“Our toughest competition will be PA and Olympic,” Smithson added.
Like Port Angeles, Smithson believes White Horse in Kingston will be “the most interesting and challenging course we will play.”
Port Townsend Redskins
The lady Redskins return state competitors senior Alexa Russell and junior Jenny Grauberger.
The duo finished 10th and 12th at the Class 1A Tri-District Tournament last year and played at the Class 1A state tourney at Columbia Point in Richland.
For whatever reason, Port Townsend always struggles with getting girls out on the course but this pair is dedicated to the game and “love to practice,” according to Port Townsend Golf coach and Port Townsend Golf Club assistant pro Gabriel Tonan.
Tonan makes it three-for-three in settling upon White Horse Golf Course as the most interesting course his squad will play this year.
They will get two cracks at it this season.
Golf with a pro
SunLand Golf & Country Club pro and general manager Tyler Sweet will host a golf outing on the Sequi course Saturday, April 3.
For $22 per person, a player will receive a round of golf, lunch and a sleeve of high-end golf balls.
The outing is open to the public.
For more information, phone the SunLand pro shop at 360-683-6800, ext. 13.
SkyRidge events
A last chance reminder about SkyRidge’s Bust a Gut tournament this Saturday.
Each foursome will start from the tips in this event and stay there, playing the full-length of the course each time around.
The green will have two pin placements, except for holes nine and 18.
Gross and net prizes, the chance to claim four KP’s, range balls, long putt and lunch are included in the $55 per person entry fee.
Players should form their own foursomes.
SkyRidge will also host a Spring Break Junior Golf camp for students ages 6-15 from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Monday, March 29 to Wednesday, March 31.
Course staff will provide instruction for the camp.
Attendees will receive a camp T-shirt and group photo as well as snacks and drinks.
On the final day of the camp, youth golfers will head out onto the links course to play some holes.
Cost is $50 per child, with additional siblings paying $30 each.
Entry forms are available at SkyRidge Golf Course pro shop, 7015 Old Olympic Highway.
For more information on any of those events, phone SkyRidge at 360-683-3673.
Port Townsend GC
Port Townsend Golf Club’s St. Patrick’s Day Scramble was a big hit last Saturday.
The event had 62 players and after the round, those players consumed more than 100 pounds of corned beef.
That sounds like a real gut buster to me!
The club will also hold a benefit tournament for the Northwest Kiwanis Camp with a 10 a.m. shotgun start on Saturday, March 27.
The two-person best ball format comes with a lunch provided on the course.
For more information, phone the pro shop at 360-385-4547.
Final note
How rude of Tiger Woods to disregard the advice of such a renowned golf expert like myself, in deciding to come back at The Masters.
I suggested a return at Arnold Palmer’s tournament next week but he shook me off like a veteran pitcher and went with Augusta.
It will be a media circus, but the private club will likely be better able to prevent the tabloids from gaining access to the grounds.
I suspect the tabloids will react by chartering helicopters and hovering over the course, watching his every move and annoying every other golfer and spectator.
Play it as it lies off the tail rotor, right?
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Michael Carman is the golf columnist for the Peninsula Daily News. His column appears on Wednesdays. He can be reached at 360-417-3527 or pdngolf@gmail.com.