SUNSET GOLF: Cimarron’s Smith leads at midway point
Joe Ender of Palo Verde made a hole-in-one on Monday, and Bishop Gorman’s Frank Frisbee had his own “Caddyshack” moment.
But the weather was the talk of the first day of the Sunrise Region boys golf tournament at Primm Valley Golf Course.
Cimarron-Memorial sophomore Brandon Smith overcame the strong late-afternoon breeze and a few raindrops on the back nine to shoot a 2-under-par 70 and owns a one-stroke lead over Brandon Bauman of Palo Verde and Frisbee.
Freshman Sam Dickey of Arbor View is another shot back after a 72 as eight golfers are within five shots of Smith.
The tournament concludes Wednesday at Mountain Falls Golf Course in Pahrump. The top two teams and the top five individuals from nonqualifying teams advance to the Division I state tournament on May 14 and 15 at Sierra Sage in Reno.
“(The wind) probably kept everybody together and didn’t let anybody run away with it, which you can do pretty easy on this course,” Bauman said. “That will definitely make Wednesday a lot harder. Every shot will be critical.”
While the Sunrise Region golfers had almost ideal conditions for the majority of their round on the 6,642-yard Desert Course, that wasn’t the case for the Sunset Region. Smith played the front nine in 3-under, but, like his competitors, struggled to score after making the turn as the wind picked up.
Frisbee had the most bizarre round of the day, making six birdies before settling for a 71. The junior lipped out a short par putt on the par-3 15th hole after his tee shot landed in a sprinkler head. But that was nothing compared to what he faced on No. 17. Frisbee’s second shot landed in a gopher hole long of the green, and he spent almost five minutes digging out his ball. After taking a drop, Frisbee got up and down to save par.
“That was crazy,” Frisbee said. “I’ll take a round in the 70s. My putting was pretty good, and I think that’s what got the job done for me.”
Bishop Gorman leads the team standings after a 383. Ender, who aced the par-3 fourth hole, finished at 76 as Palo Verde shot 395. Arbor View (413) stands third.
Bauman curled in a 30-footer for birdie on No. 9 and made the turn at 2-under, but also had a tough time negotiating the back nine.
“Some of the holes on the back nine played tough with the wind direction,” Bauman said. “I definitely could have done a little better. There’s always room for improvement, but for a first-day score, that’s not bad.”