Sixty-one students from high schools around Saskatoon took part in the city’s senior boys’, junior boys’ and girls’ golf championships on June 3.
The senior boys’ event was a tightly contested affair that required more than 18 holes. Through an 18-hole round, Josh Nagy of Holy Cross and Bedford Road’s Parker Dale sat tied atop the leaderboard with identical scores of 78, prompting a playoff hole to decide the 2019 city champion.
Nagy had to battle back, upping Dale by a stroke on the final hole to force the playoff after a hot start early in the round.
“I got off to a decent start – I was even through about seven holes, then I made a triple (bogey) and a double (bogey) and that kind of shook me up a bit,” Nagy said. “But I was able to fight back and post a decent score.”
Heading into the playoff hole, Dale said he was happy with his round overall but disappointed with a few of his shots that sent the match to a playoff.
“I played pretty solid, I made four birdies today, but I also hit a couple of shots that got me into trouble. So, some good, some bad, but overall pretty solid,” Dale said.
When asked about bouncing back and resetting after a poor shot or hole, Dale said he relied on a unique method to help calm his nerves.
“I really try and think of my favourite song,” Dale said. “I get that rhythm into my head and try and find my groove again. I did that a couple of times today and it really seemed to help me.”
His song of choice for those pressure moments?
“China Grove by the Doobie Brothers,” Dale said. “Yeah, I’m an old soul.”
So, with the rhythm of the Doobie Brothers going through his head, both Dale and Nagy were set to decide who would claim the city championship.
After drawing for honours, which Dale won, he placed his tee shot on the par-5 18th, to the left of the fairway on the far side of the hole’s dog-leg right. Nagy, seeing an opening, drilled his tee shot, but had it pull right and drop into the water for a two-stroke penalty.
From there, the match was Dale’s to lose, which he wouldn’t concede. He set himself up with an approach shot that landed on the cusp of the green. His long putt came short of the hole but he holed out on the following shot to claim the city championship.
“If you put your mind to it, anything is possible,” said Dale. “I don’t beat Josh very often – he’s a really good player. So, now that I know that I can, I can do it. Having that positive influence to carry me around will definitely be a big help,” he said.
This is the second city championship for Dale. He claimed the junior title in 2017.
For the second straight year, Nagy finished in second place.
The junior boys also required an extra hole to decide the city’s top spot for 2019 after Centennial schoolmates Jackson Wingert and Alex Swinnerton came into the clubhouse following rounds of 76. Wingert went on to take the deciding playoff hole, which was also played on the 18th.
The girls’ city championship was the only one that didn’t take an extra hole to decide. St. Joeseph’s Sarah Grieve led wire-to-wire en route to victory, finishing her afternoon with a score of 89 and beating second-place Halle Hindmarsh of Aden Bowmen by four strokes. This was Grieve’s second consecutive city championship after winning last year’s event by four strokes.
-With files from Ryan Flaherty