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Tough start at state golf tournament for Durango High School

DHS boys golf 10th at state after one round

Win or lose, the Durango High School boys golf team is going to do things as a team.

All around, the first day at the Colorado High School Activities Association Class 4A Boys Golf State Championships at Fox Hill Country Club in Longmmont was a struggle for the four Demons’ four seniors Monday.

Cameron Barnhardt led Durango with a 10-over-par 80 on the soggy and tight 6,700-yard, par-70 course. Cy Spicer shot 83, Eric Walker posted 87 and Cory Gillespie signed for 92. The team is currently in 10th place, 43 shots behind tournament leader and defending champion Valor Christian.

“We just flat out didn’t play very well (Monday),” Durango head coach Kirk Rawles said in a phone interview with The Durango Herald. “It started out OK for a few of our guys, but when the wheels fell off they fell off collectively, and the course doesn’t offer many easy holes for players to recover.”

Both of the par-5’s at Fox Hill are unreachable in two and the numerous dogleg holes are guarded by tall trees, forcing players to lay up to a distance that isn’t favorable for attacking the hole locations.

Barnhardt was even par through five holes and Spicer was two over through six but the many hazards that dot the layout in Longmont gobbled up some Durango shots and led to big numbers.

The boys from Valor Christian navigated the course with ease. Philip Lee’s 3-under 67 was the best round of the day, and his teammate, Tim Amundson, is in second place at 1-under. The Eagles lead the tournament by 18 shots ahead of second-place Evergreen.

The low round from a player from the Western Slope was posted by Durango Invitational winner Glen-Michael Mihavetz. The Montrose player shot 74 and is tied for 10th.

For this group of Demons, Tuesday will be their final round as high school golfers. Though there’s no possibility of winning, Durango is 12 shots out of the top five. With four players, strokes can be made up or lost in a hurry.

“I’m just going to tell them to free up and go for it,” Rawles said. “It’s their last round together, and I’m just hoping that they’ll go out and enjoy it. If we play to our full potential, hopefully we can move ahead of a few teams.”

jfries@durangoherald.com

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