Boys Golf 4/21

On April 21, Mayfair’s boys golf team played against Bellflower at the Lakewood Country Club and beat them by a little over 40 points. After playing 9 holes the final score was 248- 291. In golf the lower the score the better, as the points signify the amount of putts it took in order to make the ball into the designated hole.

At the course you could feel the determination on the player's faces. They were each off to themselves silently practicing their technique and form. From this moment it was clear that golf was a very relaxing sport to this team. As the time for the players to putt was approaching the teams separated themselves into groups of two. These groups would putt together until they land on the green (where the flag and hole are located) and get their balls in the hole. The golf course contained multiple environmental obstacles such as trees, ponds, sand bunkers, and on this day it was particularly windy meaning that they would have to anticipate for the wind to direct their ball elsewhere. The course was relatively curvy meaning that it was difficult for the players to be able to accurately calculate where they wanted their ball to land.

Surprisingly enough Mayfair had no issues avoiding their obstacles and keeping their balls away for the ponds and bunkers. After speaking to a few of the players it was clear that their bonds were tight. Since golf is a slower paced sport it lessens the competitiveness which allows for more sportsmanship between the team and their competitors. In order to condition properly they go out on the courses and practice their emotional and physical strengths to prepare for competitions.

Junior Deigo Ulloa who has played for Mayfair golf team since his freshman year who also received the second lowest score at the match reveals that golf isn't for everyone. He goes on to say, “It's a tough mental sport that requires a lot of focus. I've seen buff guys just kill the ball and it goes 2 feet because golf doesn't work like that, there's technique and focus that needs to be taken into consideration.” It was really interesting to understand a bit more of what golf is about. From an outside perspective golf seems boring and simple but at the end of the day it is still a rigorous sport that requires a lot of practice and commitment. Although Ulloa performed extremely well he explains that he felt it wasn't his best performance since he felt made a lot of mistakes. Senior Kyle Bill also played for the team thursday although he is in junior varsity. He explains that he just recently joined golf this year but has really enjoyed the sport and hopes to continue playing. Although he is technically a beginner Bill was happy with his performance and says that he is proud because he performed a lot better than he did the last game. Senior James Sousa who has been playing for Mayfair's golf team since his freshman year reveals that he was fascinated by golf after he was introduced to it by a friend. He says that he likes it so much because it's a slow sport and he plans to continue playing after high school as a hobby. Mayfair is playing La Mirada on April 28 and Sousa says, “I'm excited because it's an even game.”

It was so interesting to see how every player's individual performance significantly affects the overall score and how one good swing could be the difference between a win and a loss.