SUNRISE GOLF: McKay shakes off double bogey, helps Cougars take commanding lead

Coronado senior Grant McKay drained two birdie putts during his final nine holes Tuesday and nearly had two more go down.

That more than made up for his slow start on the front nine.

McKay rebounded from a double-bogey 7 on his second hole to shoot 2-over-par 74 at Badlands Golf Club and holds a three-stroke lead after the first round of the Division I Sunrise Region boys golf tournament.

“I felt like I played really well on the day overall,” McKay said. “I did miss a couple short putts, but I definitely think I had a lot of good shots to make up for it.”

Coronado, seeking its third straight region title, shot 31-over-par 391 on the Diablo and Outlaw courses, which played a hefty 6,863 yards. The Cougars hold a commanding advantage over Foothill (462) and Silverado (488).

The top two teams and the top five individuals from nonqualifying teams advance to the Division I state tournament, which opens Tuesday at Reflection Bay Golf Club.

“We’ve been playing better as of late, and the last three or four weeks have been good for us,” Coronado coach Joe Sawaia said. “We’ve been able to put some good rounds together and have guys step up, but today was a bit disappointing outside of Grant.

“We’ve got to regroup (Wednesday), change gears in terms of our mentality with the golf course … and I’m looking for us to play better.”

McKay was 3 over through six holes but birdied his 11th and 15th holes. He couldn’t convert on birdie opportunities on his 13th and 18th holes after putting his approach shots inside 5 feet, but still shot 1 under on the Outlaw course.

“I felt like I’m going to take a lot from the back nine,” McKay said. “I paid a lot of attention to my routine, process and just hitting golf shots. And I think that really helped me.”

Ethan Bozner of Coronado shot 77 and is second, while teammate Dylan Fritz is tied for third after a 79 as the Cougars placed five golfers in the top eight.

“I think this year we truly have a really solid golf team,” McKay said. “All the guys are working for the same goal, which is a state championship. It’s been a great year so far, I think we’ve achieved a lot, and hopefully we can finish it off well.”

Rancho’s Guglielmo Panelli and Jayrick Cadelina of Liberty also shot 79. Panelli shot even par on the front nine and led for a good portion of the round.