North Bay Haven’s girls golf team is young, but coach Bryan Johnson is confident the Buccaneers have enough experience at the top of their lineup to make another run through the postseason.
The Lady Buccaneers shot a team score of 206 to win the tournament at Panama City Country Club. Bozeman finished second at 241 and Arnold posted a team score of 78 over par.
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Sophomore Missy Perdue led the field with a 44, followed by eighth grader Lilah Perdue with a 48. Sophomore Bree Lewis shot 53, while junior Sydney Prejean added a 61 to complete the Buccaneers’ counting scores.
Sixth graders Harper Mayo and Lola Olney each shot 63.
The performance came from a roster that does not have a senior. Head coach Bryan Johnson said the team has three sophomores, a junior, an eighth grader and a sixth grader among its players.
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That youth is part of the challenge of developing a girls golf program, Johnson said, particularly because many of his players are still learning the fundamentals of the game.
“In girls golf, it’s very, very fundamental-based because not a lot of girls play golf,” he said. “So it’s definitely a challenge getting new girls and then instilling it in them that after golf season is done, you still have to play golf.”
Johnson said the Purdue sisters have helped set the standard for the rest of the team.
“They’re definitely the best golfers in the county,” Johnson said.
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The sisters play throughout the year and are at the course regularly, something Johnson said he believes is important to continued development.
North Bay Haven is in the middle of its season, which runs into December. The team has won its district three consecutive years under Johnson, but the district goals still remain unchanged.
Asked about the possibility of a fourth consecutive district championship, Johnson was confident.
“We’ll probably four-peat,” he said. “I don’t see us getting beat this year in our district.”
Johnson also pointed to Lewis as a player who has continued to develop. The sophomore finished third overall with a 53 in the tournament after recently shooting a personal-best 46.
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For Johnson, the next major goal is reaching the regional tournament, a stage North Bay Haven has reached every year since he became the coach.
As for players just starting the sport, Johnson keeps his advice simple.
“Just learn to chip and putt,” he said. “You can figure the rest out later.”
He also encourages young golfers to use online resources to learn the game, pointing to the growing number of young golf creators on YouTube.
“There’s so much information on YouTube nowadays that you can really dial in how to play golf,” Johnson said.
Adebanji Bamidele is a sports reporter for the Panama City News Herald. He can be reached at [email protected] or through X, formerly known as Twitter, @AdebanjiPCSport.
This article originally appeared on The News Herald: North Bay Haven golf team eyes fourth straight district title
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