By Matt Turer — mturer@ky3.com
@MattTurer
Bolivar, Mo. — After battling an unforgiving wind for nearly six hours, Greenwood waited under the sun. Knowing to win a team state title they needed one of Class 1’s best golfers to shoot a pedestrian 82, they waited.
But when the pen hit the scorecard, there was an 81 next to Gallatin’s Jett Simmons’ name.
Gallatin and Greenwood tied on the scorecard after Day 2 of the MSHSAA Class 1 state golf championship in Bolivar Tuesday, but a tie-breaker rule fell in Gallatin’s favor, leaving Greenwood standing as state runner-up despite the 677-677 tie.
Under MSHSAA tie-breaker rules, the tie is broken by the best score between each team’s No. 5 golfers, a technicality that gave Gallatin the win.
CLICK HERE FOR DAY 2 CLASS 1 STATE GOLF PHOTOS
CLICK HERE FOR DAY 1 CLASS 1 STATE GOLF PHOTOS
“Right now we’re all a little bit upset because we wish we could have the chance to fight for first place instead of being tied,” Greenwood senior all-state finisher Tony Brandt said. “But at the end of the day you have to be happy knowing we played alright and we’re co-state champions.”
While a one-hole playoff would’ve been an exciting end to a state tournament, rules are rules.
“Hey, we’re second place in the state. We’re looking at co-state champions. That’s what we call ourselves. The kids were saying playoff, playoff. Let’s do a playoff. But that’s not how it works. It’s done. It’s over. Scores are in and the fat lady’s sung,” Greenwood head coach David Oatman said.
CLICK HERE FOR FULL CLASS 1 STATE GOLF RESULTS
Brandt collected his second consecutive all-state finish with a two-day total of 158, finishing eighth in the field and ending the tournament as the highest-ranked area golfer.
“It’s hard to be dissatisfied with all-state, but honestly it’s not all that satisfying at the moment. I’m hoping as I look back I can be happy with it,” Brandt, who’s golfing at Drury University next year, said.
Greenwood’s Jacob Kassing (169) finished 22nd, John Sharp (171) 28th, Tommy Montileone (179) 46th, and Aidan McQueary (215) 90th.
“You can’t be disappointed (by the tie-breaker),” Oatman said. “I’m very proud of the kids. They accomplished a lot. They had an unprecedented season. Won tons of tournaments. We’re going to miss our seniors.”
Lincoln took home the third-place team trophy with a two-day team total of 683.
The Cardinals were led by senior Boone Kroenke (162), who secured his third consecutive all-state selection with a 10th-place individual finish despite not birdying a single hole in the tournament.
“I’m slightly disappointed. But, you know, it’s hard when the conditions are like this to shoot a good score,” Kroenke said.
“I really struggled getting yardages right. Yesterday I didn’t really putt that well. Today I just really struggled with the easy stuff because of the wind. I just couldn’t seem to get the ball onto the green. I made some putts to save pars but other than that I just couldn’t really score that well.”
With Brandt and Kroenke graduating, Galena junior Adam Cunnyngham steps into the favorite role in 2018.
After a ninth-place finish this week and a two-day total of 160, Cunnyngham has taken home an all-state medal each year he’s been in high school.
“I was hoping to [compete for first] this year,” Cunnyngham said. “I had four or five double-bogeys today. Next year I feel like it’s going to kind of be my tournament to win or lose depending on how I play, but I’m just glad to get three all-state selections my first three years.”
Like Kroenke and Brandt, Cunnyngham pointed to the high wind conditions as a major factor.
“It was frustrating today because I felt like I played the best golf I’ve played in a long time and my score obviously doesn’t show it,” Cunnyngham said.
Other area all-state finishers included New Covenant Academy’s Dakota Prewitt (163) and Miller’s Presten Richardson (163).
Team Results
School Score
1 Gallatin High School 330-347 = 677 (92)
2 Greenwood High School 341-336 = 677 (102)
3 Lincoln High School 340-343 = 683
4 Marceline High School 341-360 = 701
5 Westran High School 378-356 = 734
6 Salisbury High School 376-365 = 741
7 Bloomfield High School 349-397 = 746
8 Windsor High School 376-394 = 770
9 Stover High School 412-403 = 815
All-State (Top 15 Individual Finishers)
Name School Rd 1 Rd 2 Total
1 Logan Smith La Plata 76 74 150
2 Gannon Withers New Bloomfield 77 76 153
3 Max Floyd Barat Academy 79 75 154
4 Peyton Bell Bloomfield 74 82 156
4 Jett Robert Simmons Gallatin 75 81 156
6 Tyler Andrews Crystal City 78 79 157
6 Kade Meineka Concordia 79 78 157
8 Tony Brandt Greenwood 80 78 158
9 Adam Cunnyngham Galena 79 81 160
10 Boone Kroenke Lincoln 79 83 162
11 Jeffrey T Hamilton Marceline 80 83 163
11 Dakota S Prewitt New Covenant Academy 77 86 163
11 Presten Richardson Miller 78 85 163
14 Blake Dawson Fayette 84 81 165
14 Ross Wilkey Salisbury 84 81 165
