Quadruple bogey, double bogey, birdie.
That’s how Indian Land junior Mason Kucia finished his first day at the 4A Boys Golf State Tournament at Rose Hill Golf Club in Bluffton on Monday.
It reversed some of the momentum he’d built over the first 15 holes of the day as he entered the 16th hole at 2-under-par. He ended that first day shooting a 3-over-par 75.
“I hit a bad tee shot on 16 and just hit a few bad shots,” Kucia said. “After the tee shot and after my second shot, I was just trying to press for par instead of taking my medicine and just hitting a bogey. I feel like it kind of killed me.”
Kucia, a University of South Carolina commit, rebounded on Tuesday, hitting a 2-under-par 70 as Indian Land finished third at the state tournament with a 26-over par 602, 13 shots back of winner A.C. Flora.
It is an improvement from last year’s seventh-place finish.
Head coach Rocky White was proud of the way his team played, especially on the second day. Indian Land’s 10-over-par 298 was the lowest score on the second day of all 4A schools, and the third-best one-day score for the tournament.
“They didn’t let all the things they can’t control get in their way,” White said. “They can’t control what other teams were doing, what the other guys they were playing with were doing. They can’t control the weather. They really stayed focused on every aspect of being in their own game, and I thought that was really the key for us.”
White said he felt that his team saved its best for the state tournament.
Kucia finished in a five-way tie for second with a 1-over-par 145, one shot back from first place. Freshman Gaines Reed finished tied for seventh with a 2-over-par 146.
Kucia said that his mistakes from the first day did n’t stick with him all that long during the tournament. He did not believe he was close to winning his third individual state golf title and just wanted to finish strong to put Indian Land in a good spot.
However, after seeing the final individual standings and seeing that he was two shots away from finishing first, a tinge of regret started to seep in.
“When I found out I lost by one, at that point, it didn’t really hurt because I knew I played as good as I could that second day,” Kucia said. “But looking back at it now, it’s just like man, I wish I could have saved it. Even if I double-bogeyed (on the 16th hole), I win the tournament. I’m just going to keep moving forward. It’ll sting for a little bit knowing I could have saved a few shots there, but I’m just going to keep pushing through summer golf and next season, I’ll be back.”
Also for Indian Land, Deaton Reed finished with an 11-over-par 155, Avery Sizemore with a 14-over-par 158 and Declan Nusz with a 17-over-par 161.
Competing in the 4A tournament as an individual was Catawba Ridge senior OT Mitchell, who finished tied for 12th with a 4-over-par 148.
Andrew Jackson finishes seventh
In the 2A Boys Golf State Tournament at Cheraw State Park, Andrew Jackson High School shot a 77-over-par 653 to finish seventh in the tournament.
The senior-led Volunteers squad put out a strong showing on Monday, ending the day at fourth with a 36-over-par 324.
However, rainy weather in the second day caused some trouble for Andrew Jackson, slipping behind a few spots as Fox Creek, Chesnee and Chesterfield jumped ahead in the standings.
Overall, however, it was still an improvement for an Andrew Jackson team who didn’t qualify for the state tournament a year ago.
“I was proud of our guys,” head coach Tyler Bradley said. “I had six players come with us to state. On our whole team this year, we had nine seniors out of 13 players. (At state), I had five different seniors play and one sophomore, so it was cool to see some of their careers come to an end and how they played well as a team. We were able to place top 10 in the state, so I enjoyed seeing that.”
That lone sophomore from Andrew Jackson was Banks Steele. In his first season of competitive golf, the former soccer player earned All-State honors after finishing tied for eighth individually with a team-best 4-over-par 148.
Steele proved to be a stable figure for the future of an Andrew Jackson golf team that will see almost 75% of its players graduate in a few weeks.
“He’s so committed,” Bradley said. “It’s easy for me with Banks. All I have to do is just kind of get him going, and he does it all. He goes to the driving range before school. He has his own swing coach. He plays golf all the time. He’s obsessed with the process with his swing, getting better. He has such a great attitude. He has all the tools to be a D-I golfer.”
For Andrew Jackson, Gabriel Rascon finished with a 14-over-par 158, Adler Bell with a 24-over-par 168, and Daniel McNaughton with a 35-over par 179. Dalton Bowers shot a 20-over-par 92 in the first round, and Marshall Deese shot a 23-over-par 95 in the second round.
Other results
Nation Ford finished sixth with a 48-over-par 624 in the 5A Boys Golf State Tournament at the Country Club of Lexington.
Sophomore Carter Smith finished tied for 20th with a team-best 11-over-par 155, while junior Harrison Lapointe finished tied for 24th with a 12-over-par 156. Junior Justin Wosje finished tied for 31st with a 13-over-par 157, and senior Jake Macheski was 54th with a 21-over-par 165.
In unscored rounds, senior Ben Wakefield shot a 7-over-par 79 in the first round, while junior Tyler Kemmerlin shot a 23-over par 95 in the second round.
At the 1A Boys Golf State Championship at Hartsville Country Club on May 7, Great Falls finished 11th with a 113-over-par 401.
Most Popular
Comments / 0