Taylor County senior Cole Wentworth chips on the green from a tricky downhill lie on the par-5 16th hole at Southwood. Wentworth salvaged par and walked away the district medalist.
John Paul II senior Teresa Conroy isn’t shy about letting everyone know that her favorite course to play is Southwood Golf Club.
On Monday, Conroy established just why that is so.
The two-time All-Big Bend Golfer of the Year shot a 5-under par 67 to win a District 2-1A title, topping her previous best round of 69 shot last year— same tournament, same course.
Conroy’s round included five birdies on her first nine, which started on No. 10.
“I went out there with the mindset that the par was 69 because I can hit three out of the four par 5s,” Conroy said. “I went out saying I would get pars on those, which would actually be birdies, and then try to birdie some others. That kept me from freaking out over being 5-under par and just made me play the shots and not worry about the score at the end.”
Conroy did birdie three of the four par-5s. For the most part, short approach shots left 50-degree wedges in, setting up five-foot birdie putts. Her longest made putt of the day was a 20-plus footer on No. 11, her second hole of the day.
“It’s always great to come out and play your best, because it gives you confidence,” Conroy said. “When I go into harder tournaments at regionals and at state on tougher courses, shooting a low round gives you confidence that you can hit any shot, that you’ve practiced them all and properly executed them.”
Conroy bested Aucilla Christian freshman Megan Schofill, who shot a 2-over par 74, by seven strokes.
“Teresa played amazing,” Schofill said. “I knew Teresa would beat me, but on the first hole she’s playing really good. Then she started making putts and I thought, ‘Oh, she’s got this in the bag.’ You can just tell when she gets over the ball and you just know she’s going to sink every putt. She has a really good short game, and that’s where I struggle.”
Schofill, plus Florida High’s Olivia Russell and Savanah Bonn advanced to regionals as individuals. John Paul II, which got an 80 from Grace Murray and an 83 from Morgan Comer, advanced as the district champion. Franklin County and Maclay advanced as teams as well.
John Paul II senior Teresa Conroy shot a 5-under par 67 on Monday at Southwood to capture a district title and set a personal best for 18 holes.
The John Paul II girls golf team is headed to regionals again as district champ. Senior Teresa Conroy’s 67 led the way.
Wentworth medals, Bulldogs win
Taylor County senior Cole Wentworth could have been a baseball player. At age 13, all his friends invited him to play golf.
Fast forward through his high school career and Wentworth is heading to Valdosta State on a golf scholarship.
Monday’s District 2-1A championship at Southwood only further cemented in Wentworth’s mind that he made the right decision.
He shot a 1-over par 73, good for medalist by a stroke and only won thanks to a clutch birdie putt on No. 18, his first since the opening hole.
“I hit it good all day— I missed only two greens and one fairway— but I just couldn’t get anything in,” Wentworth said. “I rolled the ball well, but nothing was falling. Finally, I got one to fall on the last putt.”
Taylor County senior Cole Wentworth attempts a birdie putt as Florida High’s Stephen Davis, Maclay’s Bryson Bianco and Aucilla Christian’s Tima Finlayson look on. Wentworth sunk the putt to win a district title.
After unhappily walking off the par-5 16th hole with a par, he needed a birdie on the 18th to edge out Maclay sophomore Bryson Bianco and Florida High junior Stephen Davis.
Wentworth hammered a drive in the fairway and stuck his approach shot to eight feet, then pumped his fist after watching his putt drop in the hole. Davis birdied to post 74, while Bianco’s long birdie putt to force a playoff stayed outside the cup.
“It was a great round, and everyone played great,” Wentworth said. “Bryson played great and Stephen hung in there. He made pars from places I didn’t think could happen. It was tough, but it was fun because it was competitive from the first hole to the last. It felt a lot better (to win) because it wasn’t easy.”
Maclay sophomore Bryson Bianco hits his third shot on the par-5 10th hole during a second-place playoff with Florida High’s Stephen Davis.
Adding to Taylor County’s memorable day was a district title, the first under seventh-year head coach John Carson.
“This was a huge goal for us, and hopefully we’ve got the team built to even move past district and regionals,” Carson said. “Our goal is state, since the beginning of the year. Our depth is one of the qualities of this team. We’re decent top to bottom. When one guy struggles, we usually have another one to pick him up.”
The unique factor for Taylor County is that Perry Golf & Country Club allows free green fees to the Bulldogs’ golfers,
“We do informal stuff all year long,” Carson said. “We try to get together during the summer for fun, a couple times a week. The golf course in Taylor County is very accommodating, to allow us to achieve our goals. They can come out any time and get free greens fees. They can walk any time they want.”
The Taylor County boys golf team and coach John Carson (far right) captured a district title for the first time over the last seven years, along with earning medalist by Cole Wentworth (center).
Taylor County beat Maclay by six strokes for the district title. Greyson Hicks shot 75 and Graham Lynn 77 for the Bulldogs, who scored a team-best 306 with the addition of Daniel Everett’s 81.
“We’d be out practicing and I’d watch this group when they were 10, 11, 12,” Carson said. “Cole was 13, but Graham and Daniel had gotten introduced earlier. I would say Cole has been the rock of our team. He’s really held our team together and helped us grow every year.”
Carson noted the different personalities that have all melded together to create a special year.
“Cole is very demanding of himself,” Carson said. “When he doesn’t play to those expectations, he can be very hard on himself. Daniel and Graham are both real laid back. You walk up to them and you can’t tell if they’re playing good or bad. And Greyson in my opinion has been the key cog for us. He’s really taken a step from his junior to senior year.”
Taylor County senior Cole Wentworth takes a tee shot on No. 18, which he would birdie to win a district title with a 1-over par 73.
Davis, who was the district medalist last year ahead of Wentworth, beat Bianco in a two-hole playoff for second place. He was, however, the only Florida High golfer to advance to regionals.
“I had couple bad holes on 14 and 15, making a bogey and a double bogey, so I knew I had to regroup and make a few birdies,” Davis said. “I thought I could force the playoff at the end. Everything was really close between us for a while. Bryson made like five birdies on the back nine and I was right there where Cole was the entire time. It’s easy to feed off it and play better golf.”
Bianco started out rough— five over par through four holes. But on the back he caught fire.
“Too many mistakes, too many big mistakes with two double bogeys,” Bianco said. “It was bad chipping, couldn’t get it on the green for a par putt. But five birdies in the last 10 holes— the putter just started rolling. I had a really good iron shot on 15 to within six inches. It just turned around.”
Florida High junior Stephen Davis chips onto the green on No. 17. Davis birdied his last hole, coming up a stroke shy of medalist but earning a spot in the regional tournament.
Bianco gave a stroke back on the 16th, but nearly recovered, only to have his birdie putt rim out on the 18th.
“There’s a lot of positives from this round, and 74 is a good score, just wish it could have been lower,” Bianco said. “Still a lot of 18-hole rounds left though.”
Between Bianco’s score, a 77 from John Menton and a 79 from Miller Shelfer, Maclay shot 312 to advance to next week’s regionals. Also advancing for the first time past the district stage was Aucilla Christian, paced by junior Tima Finlayson’s 78.
As stated, regional play is next week and though they may have been under the radar before, Taylor County shouldn’t be anymore.
“I try not to take anything for granted now moving forward,” Carson said. “But I’d like to think we’re a team other teams are thinking about when we move onto the next phase which is regionals. I want to think ‘Look out for Taylor County, because they’re going to play well.’”
Aucilla Christian junior Tima Finlayson shot 78 and the Warriors advanced to regionals for the first time in school history.
District 1-1A tournament at Southwood Golf Club
GIRLS TEAM RESULTS
1. John Paul II, 344: Teresa Conroy 67, Grace Murray 80, Morgan Comer 83, Catherine Johnson 114
2. Franklin County, 384: Megan Collins 82, Melanie Collins 85, Alexus Johnson 105, Abby Johnson 112
3. Maclay, 457: Mary Catherine Waddell 99, Julia Croston 118, Megan Stewart 120, Laura Katherine Foote 120
4. Florida High, 497: Olivia Russell 103**, Savanah Bonn 104**, Macy Mizell 118, Savanah Hogue 172
Aucilla Christian: Megan Schofill, 77**
Maclay’s Bryson Bianco plays his fourth shot on the par-5 10th hole during a playoff with Florida High’s Stephen Davis.
BOYS TEAM RESULTS
1. Taylor County, 306: Cole Wentworth, 73, Greyson Hicks 75, Graham Lynn 77, Daniel Everett 85
2. Maclay, 312: Bryson Bianco 74, John Menton 77, Miller Shelfer 79, Spencer Fairfield 82
3. Aucilla Christian, 347: Tima Finlayson 78, Ryan Jackson 80, Cody Smith 93, Hank Wirick 96
4. John Paul II, 355: Phil Regalado 81**, Braiden O’Conner 85, Joe Silvestri 93, Andrew Stangones 96
5. NFC, 366: Peyton Collins 85, Landon Albritton 88, Jacob Granger 96, Noah Collins 97
6. Florida High, 367: Stephen Davis 74**, Luke McCarthy 87, Harley Ramba 89, Cade Blomberg 117
7. Madison County, 373: Gabe Miller 84**, Trey Killingsworth 91, Wade Braswell 97, Alex Tyson 101
*Top 3 teams advance to regionals
**Advanced to regionals as individuals
Maclay sophomore Bryson Bianco tees off on the 18th hole. Bianco tied for 2nd with a round of 74.
