Blue Eagle golfers off to strong start

The Clover High School boys’ golf team began its season March 7 at the Keenan Classic Invitational, a preseason tournament at the Lancaster Golf Club.

The Blue Eagles finished third out of a 12-team field and had two players finish in the top 10.

Jake Rowe led the scoring with a round of 79, followed by Andrew White with a score of 80. Austin Walker, Nathan Boepple and Bryce Allen completed the Blue Eagles’ lineup.

The first match of the regular season was at Spring Lake Country Club against York, with Clover winning 168 to 173.

Jake Rowe led the Blue Eagles with a round of 39, followed by Andrew White, 40, Bryce Allen, 44, and Austin Walker, 48.

CHS head golf coach Eric Harper said he sees potential in a team that is lacking experience.

“We have a young team,” Harper said. “The depth isn’t quite as good as it’s been in the past. When we won the region, we had better depth.”

Harper said he is counting on the Blue Eagles improving their game as the season goes along, which has been the case with early-season successes.

“We’ll take our time,” he said. “It’s a process to get better.”

Harper said Region 3-AAAA has a lot of strong teams.

“York really came on last year,” he said. “They’re good this year. They’ve got more depth than we do.”

Harper hopes the CHS boys can reap the benefits of tournament play, including a big tournament at Sumter.

“We’ll see how we fair in that and keep moving on,” he said. “Everything’s bundled into March and April, with the region tournament to be held in April. We’ll see how we can do between now and then.”

Rowe, a fourth year player for the Blue Eagles, has set the tone in the early stages of the season.

“I was a bit inconsistent at Spring Lake Country Club against York,” said the junior. “I did come back.”

Rowe said putting the ball in play on his first shot is a top priority.

“Sometimes I can’t put it in play with my driver,” he said. “I’ll try work on that a little more. I’m doing well with my approach shots.”

This story was originally published March 16, 2015 at 2:05 PM with the headline "Blue Eagle golfers off to strong start."