District tournaments will be held at 10 First Coast sites in boys and girls golf
Ponte Vedra High girls, boys combined to win Jax Beach Varsity
The sixth annual Jax Beach Varsity Invitational was won by Ponte Vedra High for the second time in three years.
High school golf teams are entering the post-season, beginning with district tournaments on October 27-28.The Fleming Island boys’ team is aiming for a third consecutive state title.Top teams and individuals will advance from districts to regional tournaments, and then to the state championships.
Can Fleming Island’s boys make it three state titles in a row?
Will the Ponte Vedra, Tocoi Creek and Beachside boys take their rivalry from the district tournament all the way to the state tournament?
Can the Bolles girls use their depth to make a strong post-season run?
Will Fleming Island’s Tyler Mawhinney win a second individual state title in three years?
Will Episcopal’s Sahana Chokshi continue to establish herself as one of the top girls players in the state regardless of class?
All good questions.
All will be answered within the next three weeks as high school golf enters the post-season, beginning with district tournaments Oct. 27-28.
The top two teams plus at-large teams based on the iWanamaker rankings will advance from the district to the region tournaments, and then from the region to the state tournaments. Additional individuals not on those teams will advance based on their tournament finishes and individual iWanamaker rankings.
Here is the Times-Union district golf tournament preview (rankings as of Oct. 20):
Boys District 2-3A, Oct. 27
At Stillwater Golf and Country Club, St. Augustine
Ponte Vedra and Beachside have been hammering each other since the beginning of the season, but the Sharks seem to be peaking at the right time. Cooper Franklin is the second-ranked player in the state regardless of class, first in Class 3A and four other Ponte Vedra players are 17th or higher in Class 3A, James Nagle, Noah Ochob, Easton Oliva, Jake Mason and Jude Johnson. The only issue for PV coach Mickey Leapley is that he can only start five.
Beachside’s Jaspreet Kondal and Tocoi Creek’s Ambrose Kinnare of Tocoi Creek may have something to prove at the district and regional level and never discount Creekside and St. Johns County Tournament individual champion Charlie Hipp and Nease and Dymtro Kulyk.
District 2-2A, Oct. 27
At Country Club of Lake City
Dawson Wooley and Carter Cannon of Live Oak Suwannee should lead the Bulldogs to the district title, with their main competition coming from Crawfordville Wakulla and Tallahassee Lincoln.
District 3-2A, Oct. 27
At Fernandina Beach Golf Club
The host Pirates have the depth to hold their home ground behind Colson Hale and Brady Steffen. Watch out for West Nassau’s Will Wiggins.
District 4-2A, Oct. 28
At Palatka Golf Club
Fleming Island begins its march to a third state title in a row (and second in Class 2A). Playing a limited high school schedule, Mawhinney is still ranked second in Class 2A and eighth overall, with Ryan Houck and William McCready holding their own. The Eagles are ranked fourth among all 2A teams and the next-nearest team in the district is Palatka at No. 38. Clay and Middleburg can also get into the fight for second and a regional berth.
District 4-1A, Oct. 28
At Golf Club of Fleming Island
And a freshman shall lead them … Jack Cole, ranked 22nd in the rugged Class 1A, leads Providence, which as a team is ranked 17th, the highest among teams in this district. Juniors Ethan Grossman and Alexander Stewart are also standouts this season for the Stallions. As usual, Episcopal and Bolles will make this a three-way Duval private school battle.
District 5-1A, Oct. 28
At University of Florida Golf Course
Two Gainesville schools, P.K. Yonge and Oak Hall, should battle for the district title. Keep an eye on St. Joseph Academy as a spoiler.
Girls District 2-3A, Oct. 27
At Eagle Landing Golf Club
This could be pretty wide open. Five teams in the district are ranked among the top 20 among 3A teams in the state: Ponte Vedra (11), Beachside (12), Nease (14), Creekside (18) and Bartram Trail (20). Beachside could have an edge with Sofia Rivera and Alexia Iordonov as veterans of the state championship team two years ago.
District 2-2A, Oct. 28
At Quail Heights Country Club, Lake City
The host Tigers are prohibitive favorites on one of their home courses, behind Megan Ruwe and Rayne Hardin. Wakulla and Suwanee pose the main threats.
District 3-2A, Oct. 27
At Fernandina Beach Golf Club
Fernandina Beach (19th among 2A teams) and Elle Reisner (ninth among 2A players) will be tough on their home course, but a young Bishop Kenny team has been improving as the season goes on. No. 23 Stanton, with Lily Chiang (24th individually) will be a tough out.
District 4-2A, Oct. 27
At Palatka Golf Club
Middleburg has balance going for it. The Broncos are ranked 17th in Class 2A but don’t have a player among the top 50. Braelyn Isbell and Jordan Bork will lead their efforts. Fleming Island, led by third-ranked Sophia Moody, should contend.
District 4-1A, Oct. 28
At Golf Club of Fleming Island
It’s hard to see this as anything but a Bolles-Episcopal finish. The Bulldogs are sixth in Class 1A led by Chloe McGrath (11th), Grace Brefitt (17th) and seventh-grader Riley Powell (46th). Episcopal’s Sahana Chokshi is ranked fifth in 1A and eighth overall in the state. Providence might pose some difficulty if the top two teams make a few too many bogeys.
District 5-1A, Oct. 27
At Chiefland Country Club
Gainesville Oak Hall is the class of the district, but host Chiefland might use local knowledge to its advantage. St. Joseph’s Danielle Dailey should be in the thick of it for the individual title.
What’s the next step after district tournaments?
Teams from Districts 1 through 4 will play in Region 1 tournaments. Teams from Districts 5 through 8 will play in Region 2 tournaments.
Region schedules
Boys Region 1-3A, Nov. 3, at Twin Rivers Golf Club, Oviedo. Region 1-2A, Nov. 4, at Golf Club of Fleming Island. Region 1-1A, Nov. 4, at Pensacola Country Club. Region 1-2A, Nov. 3, at Seven Springs Country Club, New Port Richey. Girls Region 1-3A, Nov. 4, at Hawkstone Country Club, Gainesville. Region 1-2A, Nov. 4, at Quail Heights Country Club, Lake City. Region 1-1A, Nov. 3, at Eagle Harbor Golf Club. Region 1-2A, Nov. 4, at Seven Springs Country Club, New Port Richey. When are the FHSAA state golf tournaments?
All state tournaments will be 36 holes, at the Mission Inn Resort in Howey-in-the-Hills
Class 3A, Nov. 11-12 (boys at El Campeon Course, girls at Las Colinas Course). Class 1A, Nov. 14-15 (boys at El Campeon Course, girls at Las Colinas Course). Class 2A, Nov. 18-19 (boys at El Campeon Course, girls at Las Colinas Course).
