Competition heats up on the greens

Pinedale Wrangler golf team approaches midpoint of season

By Robert Galbreath, rgalbreath@pinedaleroundup.com
Posted 8/25/22

The Pinedale boys’ varsity squad finished sixth, tallying a combined total of 754 strokes over two days. The team did not field a contestant in girls’ varsity for both rounds.

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Competition heats up on the greens

Pinedale Wrangler golf team approaches midpoint of season

Posted

WYOMING – The Pinedale High School Wrangler golf team hit the greens for a busy weekend of competition as the team approaches the midpoint of its season.

On Thursday and Friday, Aug. 18-19, athletes gathered for the Star Valley High School Invitational. Golfers teed off at the Cedar Creek Golf Course at Star Valley Ranch on Thursday followed by a round at Valley View Golf Course in Afton on Friday.

The Pinedale boys’ varsity squad finished sixth, tallying a combined total of 754 strokes over two days. The team did not field a contestant in girls’ varsity for both rounds.

Head Coach Luke Myszewski expressed pride in the team’s strong performance at two different golf courses.

“In Star Valley last week, the highlight was that nearly everyone improved their scores for the second day of competition, some of them by over 10 strokes,” he said. “(Junior) Brody Hamby had a season best of 79 the second day and missed making the top 10 by one stroke.”

Back on the bus Monday, the Wranglers participated in the Broncs Invitational hosted by Jackson at Teton Pines Golf Course. The Pinedale varsity boys took third following one round with a score of 388. With only a single varsity girl competing at Jackson, the Lady Wranglers did not place in team scoring.

“In Jackson on Monday, we did not have any personal bests, but I think overall the team played well on a very difficult course,” said Myszewski. “We are still working on dialing in our top-five varsity spots week-to-week and so our team score might have been a few strokes better if we had the players in the right spots.”

In addition to battling opponents from other schools at the invitational, Pinedale golfers are enjoying “great competition” among team members to secure the top varsity spots with conference and state competitions less than a month away, Myszewski explained.

“Each one of our boys is capable of posting a varsity score, it’s just a matter of who does so each week,” he added. “As we approach the second half of the season, it’s all about consistency and good decision making for the players as there are no easy courses left for us to play.”

Star Valley Invite results

Hamby finished both rounds in 12th place with an overall score of 170, a single hit shy of a two-way tie for 10th place at 169. He advanced 12 strokes from a first-day score of 91 to 79 on the second day.

Bill Hibbert, a sophomore from Big Piney, came in 32nd place with a cumulative score of 192. He shot 103 in the first round, moving up on the leaderboard by 14 strokes for an 89 by the second round.

Senior Blade Hibbert, also from Big Piney, and freshman Decker Normington both finished 34th at 196. Hibbert shot 103 the first day, improving to 93 the second day. Normington tallied 100 strokes in the first round and 96 the second.

Shooting 105 on day one and 101 on day two, senior Braiden Carter took 40th place overall with 206.

Sophomore Alex Gosar placed 45th with 226, scoring 110 and 116 respectively. Big Piney sophomore Ashton Bennett came in 47th with 113 on day one and 118 on day two for a combined score of 231.

Broncs Invitational results

Representing Pinedale in the girls’ varsity division, sophomore Elyn Bowers scored 112 following a single round, placing her in eighth place on the leaderboard.

Hamby led the Pinedale boys’ varsity division, finishing the day with 91 strokes. Bill Hibbert shot in 96, followed by Blade Hibbert with 97.

Sophomore Garrett Haley rounded the day out with a score of 104. Junior Josh Gosar finished the round tallying 105 strokes.

Fellow junior Ryley Lea shot in 106, followed by Alex Gosar with 107. Normington shot 111 and Bennett 112.