Golf Struggles in Proctor Match

With a team entirely comprised of lowerclassmen, Big Red struggled against Proctor Academy, as they lost 8-2 at Baker Hill Golf Club. 

Coach Bob Bailey went into this match with a team entirely composed of a very talented group of preps because only upperclassmen played in the previous match. In addition, he wanted the younger athletes to have more experience and practice in preparation for the future seasons. However, even a strong group of underclassmen could not overcome a more experienced Proctor team.

Prep Brian Choi expressed his disappointment about the final score, but he optimistically pointed out, “We definitely could have won with a couple of upperclassmen but it was good experience for some of the preps,” he said.

Prep Charlie Dubiel, one of the most experienced prep golfers on the team, believed that the team could have performed better, but agreed with Choi that it was a great chance for less experienced golfers to participate in a match. “I think the match could have gone better. We lost 8-2, but we had all preps in the lineup,” he said. “This made it difficult, but I think it was a good experience for everyone to get into a match.”

Because of this opportunity to perform in a match, some of these new athletes were able to display some of their hidden talents that they had to bring to the team, like prep Grant Cammock. “I thought Grant stood out, beating his opponent although it was Grant's first golf match,” Choi said.

The more experienced golfers on the team also benefited from the all-preps lineup. “We got to play a really good course, which always makes it better. I was really excited to get out there today,” Dubiel said. “I've been hitting the ball really well for the last week, and thought I could have carried the same level of play into this match.”

Cammock was especially impressed with Choi, who is also one of the more experienced preps on the team. “Brian played very well against Proctor,” Cammock said. “He had the lowest score of the team, shooting 3 over.”

Although the team took a loss on the statistics sheet, Big Red came out of the course as a more experienced match for future competitors. 

Cammock also believes that even with the victory in his match, there are still aspects he needs to improve for the upcoming matches. “Even though I won my match, for my next match, I need to be more consistent with my driving.”

If varsity golf plays consistently and perform at the matches to their full potential, the future looks very bright for the young, talented Phillips Exeter golf team.

“The future of the team does look promising,” Cammock said. “We can win matches when everyone is playing well. Also, we are going to get better.”

Coach Bailey agreed. “As a cumulative group, we have not played to our potential and if we do, I know we can get them all,” he said.