‘Never a doubt.’ Boys state golf championship delivers down-to-the-wire drama.
Playing in one make-or-break high school golf tournament after another for the last month, Lexington Catholic’s Charlie Spiller has proved his mettle.
Spiller claimed his Region 9 title in a four-way playoff two weeks ago in Richmond.
Then, he refused to let a nightmare quadruple bogey shake his confidence at last week’s semi-state tournament in Somerset. There Spiller made the cut for this week’s state tournament as the last golfer in by rallying with a birdie on the final hole.
So, when Spiller won a three-way playoff Wednesday for this year’s Leachman Buick-GMC-Cadillac KHSAA Boys’ State Golf Championship individual title at Bowling Green Country Club, his coach summed it up best.
“Ah, man, he’s amazing. He was very clutch today,” Lexington Catholic coach Tyler Hughes said. “It was an excellent performance under pressure. There was never a doubt.”
Spiller tapped in a 1½-foot putt for par on the third playoff hole to claim the crown as Pikeville’s Cam Roberts and Allen County-Scottsville’s Barton Rutledge each bogeyed. They all reached the playoff by finishing the first 36 holes over two days as the only players in red figures at 1-under par.
“My whole family was there cheering me on. It was a really cool moment,” said Spiller, a senior who has made every state tournament since eighth grade. “I didn’t play my best today, but I had a lot of really good shots and a bunch of really good putts. My speed on the greens was really key, honestly, especially with how fast and tough these greens are.”
Meanwhile, Madison Central claimed the program’s third consecutive team championship. That’s a feat accomplished by only three other schools in the event’s 90-year history.
“It’s a big blur. And after being here the last two years in this spot, it’s a big relief,” said Madison Central coach Kyle Congleton, who saw his team’s seven-shot lead after the first day fade into a two-shot deficit at one point. “It was just good to see the boys clutch up and hit the shots that were needed and do what we were supposed to do and what we’ve worked for all year.”
Spiller keeps his cool
Spiller finished the first day of competition Tuesday at 2-under par, tied for the lead with Madison Central’s Tucker Jones but well within reach for anyone who got hot during Wednesday’s final round if he should falter.
Roberts looked to be that player after five birdies and two bogeys over the first 15 holes. His birdie on the par-5 14th moved him into the lead all alone at 3-under par.
Rutledge put himself atop the leaderboard for a bit with birdies on Nos. 3, 4, 5 and 8, but bogeys at Nos. 10 and 11 drew him back. He birdied the par-5 18th hole to reach the playoff.
As those two surged, Spiller sputtered with bogeys on Nos. 1 and 4. He birdied the par-3 7th, but bogeyed No. 9 to go into the last nine holes at even par. He rallied with birdies on No. 11 and 14, but a bogey on No. 16 left him at 1-under par, one shot off the lead at that time.
“I tried to stay calm and stay in the moment. After making that bogey (at No. 16), I walked off the green and onto the next tee and probably one of my best tee shots of the day,” Spiller said. “It’s just trying to stay present, and I knew what I had to do at that point: just stay calm and make pars and birdie the last if I could.”
Fortunately for Spiller, Roberts, who was playing in the group just ahead of him, bogeyed Nos. 16 and 17 to fall back to 1-under par. Spiller parred the last two holes to preserve the tie and set up his victory.
Madison Central’s three-peat did not come easy
Madison Central began its state title defense Wednesday with a seven-shot lead over Louisville’s Trinity after finishing Tuesday’s first round at 4-over par.
Then disaster struck. Madison Central’s Seth Barker and Radney Bales each double-bogeyed No. 1. Tucker Jones bogeyed No. 1 and double-bogeyed No. 4.
The lead was gone.
“The mental and physical grind out there today was one I’ve never been a part of. It literally came down to the last hole,” Coach Congleton said.
Falling as many as two shots behind Trinity after each team’s five golfers made the turn, Madison Central regained its composure. The Indians notched just five bogeys over the last seven holes and got birdies on Nos. 14 and 18 from Barker, a junior, to finish 20-over par as a team.
Over that same stretch, Trinity’s golfers went 8-over par with a double bogey and a bogey on No. 18 to finish four shots behind Madison Central at 24-over par.
“It’s been nerve-wracking all day. It’s a different type of pressure,” said Barker, who teed off as Madison Central’s No. 3 golfer and put his final birdie on the board with teammates Jake Feldhaus and Jones still on the course. “Bringing it home is just a different type of feeling. … I’m still in shock. It’s one of those once-in-a-lifetime things. You always dream about it.”
Madison Central got a top-10 finish from Barker (+3) and solid rounds from Feldhaus (+4), Jones (+6) and Bales (+7). The high score of Reece Keeton (+24) is thrown out in the team format. Barker, Bales and Keeton were all part of last season’s state champions. Bales has been part of all three crowns.
Madison Central joins St. Xavier, Male and Anchorage as the only boys golf teams to win at least three straight state championships. St. X did it from 2014 to 2016. Now-defunct Anchorage won four straight from 1936 to 1939. Male won five in a row from 1944 to 1948.
“It will mean a whole lot more to us in the days to come,” Congleton said. “It means a lot for Madison Central and Gibson Bay (the team’s home course) and our town. We have so much support. I never thought in my 31 years of living that I’d be leading the pack as a three-time state champion. I’m so proud and glad to be a part of it.”
Boys State Golf Championship individual top 10
1. Charlie Spiller, Lexington Catholic, -1, 70-73—143*; T2. Cam Roberts, Pikeville, -1, 72-71—143; T2. Barton Rutledge, Allen County-Scottsville, -1, 73-70—143; T4. Luc Kelty, St. Xavier, +1, 72-73—145; T4. Brady Hensley, North Laurel, +1, 71-74—145; T4. Gabe Cole, Taylor County, +1, 73-72—145; T4. Landon Hunt, McCracken County, +1, 74-71—145; T8. Layton Richey, Greenwood, +2, 73-73—146; T8. Luke Bryant, Eastern, +2, 74-72—146; 10. Seth Barker, Madison Central, +3, 74-73—147.
*Won title after three playoff holes.
Boys State Golf Championship team results
1. Madison Central, +20, 292-304—596; 2. Trinity, +24, 299-301—600; 3. McCracken County, +38, 311-303—614; 4. Christian Academy of Louisville, +39, 309-306—615; T5. Frederick Douglass, +47, 314-309—623; T5. Taylor County, +47, 307-316—623; 7. Owensboro, +62, 332-306—638; 8. St. Henry, +73, 329-320—649; 9. Pulaski County, +84, 328-332—660
Complete results online: khsaa.org/sports-sport-activities/fall/golf/
This story was originally published October 10, 2024 at 7:01 AM.
