By Pat Dailey (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
REEDS SPRING — Walker Serrano grudgingly admits he still can’t get the best of his father on the links. But the Springfield Catholic sophomore did get the best of the field at the COC Small Schools Tournament on Monday.
Serrano was the only golfer in the 70s, as he carded a five-over par 76 at Ledgestone Country Club to take medalist honors by four strokes. In addition, he led the Irish to the team championship by nine strokes over defending Class 3 state champion Rogersville.
For Serrano, the individual title is the biggest accomplishment of his prep career to date. His father, Antonio, was among Springfield’s finest golfers 15 years ago, when he recorded top-10 finishes at the Missouri Amateur in 2002 and 2003.
“He’s still able to beat me, which kind of stinks,” Walker said. “But it pushes me to keep trying to beat him.
“I was young, but I’ve been told about his (glory days). It’s big shoes to fill, which is hard. But my Dad is basically my coach. He helps me out so much day in and day out.”
The Serranos actually don’t share much in common on the course.
“I don’t hit the ball very far, while he hits it a country mile,” Walker said. “He’s more about the long game and I’m more about the short game.”
Walker’s short game served him well Monday. He had two birdies and was one-over through 13 holes. While most of his cohorts were reaching into their bags for another ball or two or three, Serrano was playing with the same ball along Ledgestone’s tight track.
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“I missed only 1-2 fairways today, which helped a lot,” he said.
Serrano closed strong by not dwelling on a triple-bogey on the 14th.
“It can be hard to move past that, but I had to move past it,” he said. “I try to forget about any bad shots and try to remember the good. That keeps me going and helps me find my mojo.”
Serrano played as Catholic’s No. 3 player. The Irish’s No. 5 player, Michael Zolfaghari, also shined. He was runner-up with an 80.
“That was the difference for us,” Catholic coach Joe Easter said.
Zolfaghari opened with a pair of double-bogies while starting his round on the 16th and 17th. Not deterred, he shot a 39 on the front nine.
“My confidence goes through the roof,” Zolfaghari said. “I’d been playing well leading up to this tournament, so I was thinking that maybe I could go low. After I shot a 39 on the front nine, I figured I could manage the back nine and shoot 80.
“I hit the ball well. My irons and chipping were definitely good. If I could have made some putts, my score would have been even lower.”
Zolfaghari didn’t manage his golf-cart so well. He endured a mishap upon dropping his range-finder in between holes.
“My range-finder went to the bottom of the cart and I went to pick it up,” he said. “The cart was going a little to the right, but I thought I could pick up the range-finder and turn. I was a little late and the cart ran into the side of the bridge. That wasn’t the greatest moment.”
The hottest golfer leading up to the tourney was Rogersville’s Jackson Von Beheren. After shooting a 74 at Greene Hills Country Club last week, he followed up with an 81 to take third.
Von Beheren had a 38 on the front nine and a 43 on the back nine.
“My round was good at the beginning,” he said. “The wind picked up in the afternoon and I made some bad shots. My last five holes were bad. It really kind of fell apart on me. Other than that, it was a decent day.
“I feel good about my swing and I’ve been playing well during the last stretch. Hopefully, I can keep it up. I’m looking forward to Districts and hopefully we can play as well as we did last year.”
Bolivar’s Drake Johnson reunited with his former Catholic teammates while shooting an 85 and finishing in a tie for sixth. Johnson was a Liberator as a freshman and sophomore and suited up for the Irish last year, before returning to Bolivar this year.
“Transferring my junior was hard,” Johnson said. “Everybody was glad for me to be back at Bolivar this year and I was glad, too, because I want to graduate with everyone I’ve been going to school with since kindergarten.”
COC Small Schools Tournament
Individual Standings
1. Serrano, Catholic 76; 2. Zolfagharii, Catholic 80, 3. Von Beheren, Rogersville 81; 4 (tie) Puckett, Catholic and Brewer, Rogersville 84; 6 (tie) Hutchinson and LaRue, Rogersville; Johnson, Bolivar and Louderbaugh, Buffalo 85; 10. Tynes, Catholic 86.
Team Standings
CATHOLIC (326) — Serrano 76, Zolfaghari 80, Puckett 84, Tynes 86, Palmer 89
ROGERSVILLE (335) — Von Beheren 81, Brewer 84, Hutchinson 85, LaRue 85, Castleberry 87
BOLIVAR (387) — Johnson 85, Russell 95, Wells 103, Batten 104, Bradley 116
HOLLISTER (395) — Calovich 91, Haefecker 93, Beard 96, Misimer 115, Potter 117
BUFFALO (401) — Louderbaugh 85, Fielder 95, Maddux 106, Abraham 115
REEDS SPRING (423) — McMurdo 95, Green 96, Brakhane 103, Taylor 129
MARSHFIELD (473) — Wolff 96, Glore 110, Harrod 140, Broyles 143, Rockwood 132
