Coach Ryan Nelson has been coaching girls’ golf at Topeka High for 19 years. One of his goals for the team is to help the team, comprised mainly of first-year golfers, to get better at golf.
“We have a young, inexperienced team,” Nelson said. “The biggest goal this year is just to get better.”
Nelson encouraged students who want to golf to start as soon as possible.
“I get a lot of juniors and seniors who say they wanna try something new. With golf, it’s kinda too late at that point, because it’s something you really need to do for multiple years. I always tell kids: I’d rather get you as a freshman.”
Nelson said introducing kids to golf in middle school would help him get more players in their freshman or sophomore year.
“If our middle schools had golf, it would help tremendously,” Nelson said. “But even if they did some golf units in PE, I think it would help me. Unfortunately, golf is a sport driven by having a family member who introduces you to it.”
Nelson said that a girl’s golf team has ranged from one player to fifteen over the years, with six to eight players being an average amount. The THS girls’ golf team had six members this year.
The small team allowed for closer bonds between teammates, according to junior and third-year player Riley McMillian.
“You get to know your teammates super well,” McMillan said, “When someone can’t go to a tournament, you can really feel their absence.”
The team scored fourth place at the Topeka West with 234 points on September 11, and scored third place at the THS Invitational on September 24 with a total of 225 points.
Photos by Brooklyn Wieland