The Davie men’s golf season came to a close on April 29 against Starmount at Silo Run. The War Eagles emerged victorious 129 to 168, ending the season with a well-earned win. The practice, effort, and determination put into building up the team’s skill and confidence all culminated in a satisfying end to a season full of challenges.
Those challenges began with the loss of players. Last year, the team graduated eight seniors, all of whom assisted in leading them to the state playoffs. This left the roster with only a few experienced golfers and a list of new faces. With so many holes to fill and uncertainty from the beginning of the season, junior Carter Spillman, who was on the team last year, is proud of what the team accomplished.
“We lost five of our starting six from last year due to various reasons, and I think with a lot of golfers inexperienced in competition, we were able to have a solid year,” Spillman said. “Even if we didn’t win a lot, we created some amazing memories that we will never forget.”
The team had to undergo a period of rebuilding, and did so by working hard on the course to build a solid foundation. The practice and experience they gained are making the next season look bright. Only four out of twelve golfers on the team are graduating, meaning that next year the team will be more experienced and better equipped to claim a conference title than they have in previous seasons.
Spillman had an impressive season, maintaining the 1st seed on the team all season long and placing in the top 15 in the conference. Spillman’s favorite memories were tying with the #1 player in the conference and posting on the Davie men’s golf team’s Instagram. Though Spillman had a successful season, there are still a few things he wishes to improve.
“I want to find more consistency in my swing and game in general,” Spillman said. “My good days are tough to beat, but I have quite a few bad days as well. I’ll need to practice more and hopefully turn my bad shots into better shots.”
Junior Braxton Hunter was the only member of the team to qualify for regionals and all-conference. Hunter states that he set two goals for himself: to make all-conference and regionals, both of which he achieved by going to the range in his free time and constantly working on his game. Hunter is returning next year with his eyes set on being all-conference and qualifying for states. Hunter shares that over the off-season, he wants to improve his mental game and that he “tends to get in his head.” Golf is just as much a mental as it is a physical sport; the ability to move on from a bad hole is no easy feat and can make the difference in a match.
Senior Noah Shore had a successful season, shooting his career best of 82 on 18 holes at the Conference Championship at Maple Chase. Shore cited his performance at this match as the highlight of the season.
“We got out of school so early and spent the whole day there,” Shore recalled. “I played my best round ever that day and just loved the environment with everyone around.”
Moving on to college, Shore will be attending Appalachian State University in the fall. Shore still plans to golf in his free time and improve his skills to become a more confident player.
The Davie golf team faced a hard season, but this did not stop them from enjoying the game and making memories. Despite being a young team, the team had a season to be proud of and a future to look forward to.
