Hiland’s golf lineup not as easy as 1-2-3
If recent history dictates anything, it will be Hiland golfers Camden Bille, left, Andrew Beun and Jack Mast will battle for the right to hold the team’s No. 1 position all season.
For most high school golf teams, the climb to playing the No. 1 man is usually fairly cut and dried, with one individual usually standing head and shoulders above the rest of his team, carrying them on a nightly basis with the team’s lowest score.
However, from the moment the Hiland Hawks’ season went from a rugged summer slate of activity into the new season, where the Hawks participated in plenty of early-season tournaments prior to delving into head-to-head match play, it has been anyone’s guess as to which of the top three players will tee it up at the one-man position each time out.
In the Pirate Invite to open the regular season, Jack Mast fired a 75 while Andrew Beun and Camden Bille each carded 76.
In the Polar Bear Invitational, Beun was on fire, carding a 71, while Mast and Bille added scores of 75 and 77, respectively.
At the TCC Invite, Mast led the way at 75 while Beun shot a 78. Then in the Inter-Valley Conference Preseason Tournament, Bille came up huge, firing a 74 to push the Hawks to victory.
Back and forth the trio has gone in claiming the top spot, and it appears as though it will be that way throughout the season as the Hawks work toward what they hope will be a return trip to state.
As far as they are concerned, that would be just fine, as long as their effort lands them back at state with a chance to improve on last season’s fourth-place finish after winning it all the year prior.
“I think being this tight helps us stay locked in at practice,” said Bille, the team’s lone senior. “There’s no goofing around, and it helps us in matches because we all strive to be that No. 1 guy, but in the end it’s going to make us all better, and that’s what really matters the most.”
Beun said all three of them are ultra-competitive, even between one another, where they thrive on challenging each other on a regular basis.
“We push each other, and that helps us play better,” said Beun, a sophomore. “Even when we’re playing teams that might not be that strong, we are all competing against each other at the same time, so that keeps us focused.”
Mast, a junior, said not only do they enjoy the competition of knocking heads in both practice and matches, but also they relish the idea of serving as leaders and mentors for younger players, like sophomore Grant Bille and freshman Jesse Conn, both of whom have flashed strong play already this season.
“We’ve experienced a lot of success in recent years, and I think in the next few years we can continue that tradition, and being examples of how to work at the game for the younger guys is important for us,” Mast said. “We want to help keep growing the program.”
For head coach Austin Kaufman, the conundrum of who to play where isn’t an easy choice, but it is made simpler by the players qualifying each week to settle in where their scores dictate.
And on nights where the competition isn’t close with whomever they are playing, it can still get intense. Take for instance their match with Ridgewood in which they won the nine-hole match by nearly 70 strokes.
Mast said he knew his two teammates were both challenging to go under par, so he knew where he stood on the sixth hole.
“I told coach, ‘I guess I have to eagle this hole,’” Mast said.
He produced a birdie and went on to shoot a one-under 35 at Fire Ridge Golf Course, tying Mast, while Bille ended with a 37. “It’s that kind of thing that keeps us motivated,” he said.
When you strive to be No. 1 on your team, it’s always going to be an ongoing battle with these three. What they really want isn’t to end the season as No. 1 on their team, but rather No. 1 as a team in Division III.
“That’s really all that matters,” Bille said.