MONTAGUE — Montague was unable to sustain a terrific start at the Division 3 regional tournament on its home course Tuesday, ending its season with a solid score of 350 and a sixth-place finish.
Coach Brad Tate said the Wildcats played great golf early on and were in third place through 12 holes, which had them in position to qualify for the state meet. However, things got away from them in the latter portion of the tournament.
“I believe that we were not sure that we belonged near the top, and we began to think about what we could shoot instead of what our next shot required,” Tate said.
Montague tied with Tri-County for sixth place, holding the spot due to the fifth-score tiebreaker.
Facing some terrific opposition - the three teams that did qualify, all Grand Rapids teams, were Covenant Christian, West Catholic and NorthPointe Christian - the Wildcats got five solid rounds from its five players, none of whom scored any higher than a 91.
The team’s best round came from Owen Raeth, the lone Wildcat senior to play Tuesday, who got off to a great start by scoring par on each of his first 10 holes. However, Raeth struggled with a couple of holes later in the round and settled for an 85, finishing just three strokes out of the last individual qualifying spot.
Jack Bailey, Montague’s #1-seeded player, was right behind Raeth, scoring an 86, and Bucky Aney also cleared 90, shooting an 88. Aney also got off to a quality start, scoring par on five of his first eight holes with bogeys on the other three before some struggles hit later.
Trevin Silvers and Brayden Bultema each carded a 91 for the Wildcats. Bultema had the distinction of scoring the team’s only birdie for the day, scoring one on the par-4 ninth hole.
With its four returning players from the regionals set to be seniors, Tate said the Wildcats could turn their late struggles into a positive next spring.
“Golf is not a forgiving sport, and to shoot really good scores in the biggest moments requires mental toughness,” Tate said. “I believe that we will learn from today and hopefully use it as motivation for next season.”
