The Columneetza Cougars golf team is headed off to compete at a provincial championship.
The team of five qualified for the Provincial High School ‘AA’ Golf Championships after finishing first at the May 16 zone championships, held at the Prince George Golf and Curling Club.
“I’m very excited about our team,” said Cougars golf coach Laura Kaufman. “We have three strong Grade 10 players — Derreck Walters, Ryan LaBossiere and Brett LaBossiere — and two grade 11s, plus a second team with young developing players.”
The team of Walters, Brett, Ryan, Ben Magnuson and Bryon Gaal fired a combined 321 at Prince George’s zone qualifier to earn top spot among 115 players and 23 competing teams.
Adding to that, Walters posted a score of 76 to finish first overall among individual golfers, while Brett tied for fourth with a 79.
Columneetza’s second team of Brett Potter, Taylor Hemmond, Nico Ainley, Mitchell Pukacz and Evan Richat-Fontaine finished with a combined 358 at zones.
“For Ben and Bryon, this will be their first provincial-level competition,” Kaufman said. “For Ben, this will be only his second competition ever.
“Gaining competitive experience is crucial so we can improve and compete against Lower Mainland teams that play all year round and have inter-school leagues.”
Heading into provincials Kaufman knows the competition will be stiff; however, believes her team is ready to play some solid golf.
“The competition is tough [at provincials] and we just want to play our best,” she said.
“In golf it is important to stay focused on your game and not get caught up in your competitors’ game or compare your score to par.
“Play one shot at a time is the golden rule that is very hard to follow, especially in competition.”
Taking the second berth at the zone championships were Prince George’s Duchess Park Condors.
Williams Lake secondary’s team of Lynden Grosso, Josh Bush, Reid Fuller and Rob Pedersen finished fifth out of eight teams.
This year’s ‘AA’ provincials will be held at The Springs Course in Radium from May 29-31.