The OH boys golf team continued their season this month with a special invitation to the Brophy Rodeo tournament in Scottsdale, AZ, hosted by Brophy College Preparatory School.
This invitation was significant, as it is the first time OH has been invited to this event, made up of all the best high school golf teams in the U.S.
“Other Illinois schools have been [to this tournament] before, [but] this will be our team’s first time,” said Head Coach Coach Chad Pohlmann.
The team competed on Sept. 10-12 at the Raptor Course at Grayhawk Golf Club, a par 72 and 7,151 yard course. During the tournament, OH represented their golf team and Oswego as a whole.
“It felt amazing to represent Oswego and the Midwest,” OH senior Charlie Cooney said. “We played a lot of teams that play all year around so it was nice to show that the Midwest has some good golfers.”
Oswego High School was facing some tough competition, including Brophy College Prep, which was #1 high school golf team in the U.S. last year.
“Every team was definitely tough since they were all the best teams from their state,” OH senior player Carter Anderson said. “But Brophy from Arizona was probably the best.”
Even amid the different climate (hotter), the course (challenging), and the competition (tough), the team reported confidence and excitement about the tourney.
“[It] felt awesome,” Anderson smiled. “It was such a hard course, and multiple big D1 players were there, so I was able to see how I [was] compared to them.”
“It was an honor to play in the Brophy Rodeo, so many great teams were there with many state champions,” Cooney said. “I think there was about 20 D1 golfers in the tournament so it felt amazing to play with high level competition.”
Since OH was playing against some of the best high school golf teams in the U.S., they got a chance to see their level against other high level players.
“It was definitely a cool experience, especially because we felt like underdogs with [this] being our first tournament and since we’re the only team who doesn’t play year round,” Anderson said. “They treated us like pros. They had everything roped off and provided us with a locker room and dinner every day.”
With the team’s hard work and determination, placed 13 of the 22 competing teams; The First Academy from Orlando, FL, took home the tourney trophy.
Even without a top-place finish, the players said it was a very fun experience overall.
“The tournament was really fun, and I enjoyed my experience there,” Cooney said. “But [the experience] showed us the level that we have to play at to make it to State and compete at the highest level.”
The team has their next match-up today against Geneva at Eaglebrook Golf Course, 3:45 p.m.
