Vail Christian and Vail Mountain School boys golf teams headed to state

Both Vail Mountain School and Vail Christian are headed to the state golf tournament.

The Gore Rangers and Saints finished first and second, respectively, at the 2A Region 4 golf tournament on Monday at Devil’s Thumb Golf Club in Delta. Saints senior Sam Casey — who won the Eagle Valley Invitational a week ago — took the individual title by 10 strokes.

“I was very excited to play. I needed some redemption from last year on those last four holes,” said Casey, who shot 4-over on his final four holes at the 3A Region 4 tournament last year to finish with a 78 and place fifth. “I got to 16 and I just lost it from there.”

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Casey said he was nervous on the first tee Monday, but opened with a par and drilled a six-foot birdie putt on the second hole.

“It was a good start to the day and that led to me scoring well with a good mental aspect,” he said. After a pair of consecutive bogeys on 13 and 14, the senior finished strong, too. He birdied his last two holes — a 173-yard par-3 and a 539-yard par-5.

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“Which might have been the deciding factor in the one-stroke team win over Meeker,” head coach Chad Hansen pointed out.

While the Gore Rangers claimed an 11-point win behind Weston Roach and Oliver Kullberger’s second-place finishes, Vail Christian needed every shot to secure the second and final state-qualifying slot. Eli Adams score of 93 included a nine on the first hole after the freshman accidentally hit the wrong ball.

“Not the ideal way to start off your regional tournament, but he held strong the rest of the way,” Hansen said.

Casey came off the course first and was able to cheer home his teammates. Wyatt Hansen was the last Saint to finish, and had a two-foot putt to save double-bogey — and clinch the silver medal.

“It just makes it that much more appreciable to bring them to state with me,” said Casey who gave his round a nine out of 10.

“I went through last night thinking about each of my strokes,” he continued. “I had eight bad shots which led to five missed strokes.”

He was the only player to break 80.

“All teams struggled as the course played very difficult with its tough set up and tough pin locations,” Hansen said. “(It’s) amazing scores were that high.”

The Gore Rangers — who won the 3A team title in 2022 and finished second in the 3A Region 4 tournament last year — were led by Roach and Kullberger’s 83. Porter Huff carded an 86 to round out the scoring and Fisher Phillips shot an 88 as the fourth varsity starter.

“Besides plenty of water and golf snacks, we brought with us a secret weapon: a plan for course management,” stated Shawn Ellenbaum, who has visited Devil’s Thumb three times in his five years as a coach.

“I have seen what it takes to win there,” he continued. “With so many elevated tees to imaginably drivable greens, the temptation to hit the driver is real.”

Ellenbaum said he and fellow coach Kevin Austrian told the boys to “hold fast and stick to the game plan.”

“For a high school kid to hit a 6-iron or hybrid when everyone else is going for it with the boom stick is a true testament to these boyss focus and coachability,” he said. “Of course our hats are off to all four of them for playing well and grinding all year long to put this plan into action. It truly was a team effort.”

The top-2 teams and best 13 individuals not on a qualifying team punched their tickets to the state tournament, which is Oct. 7-8 at The Club at Rollins Hills in Golden. Huff will not join his Vail Mountain teammates at state as he will be departing to Chile this week to train for his upcoming mogul season. Last winter, Huff won Youth Olympic gold and silver medals, competed at the World Junior Championships and made his World Cup debut at Deer Valley in Utah.

“We all know this is Porter’s path and we all wish him the best in his future endeavors with the U.S. Ski Team,” Ellenbaum said.  

Casey, who finished 27th at state last year, is hoping for at least a top-10 finish in his final prep tournament.

“I’ve got some expectations to do well,” he said.