Welch leads Louisburg at state golf

Louisburg senior Hogan Welch watches his tee shot during a tournament earlier this season. Welch, along with senior T.J. Svoboda and junior Ty Martin, competed in the Class 4A state golf tournament in Ulysses on May 23.

ULYSSES – Hogan Welch, T.J. Svoboda and Ty Martin each put together a solid round of golf at their regional to qualify for the state tournament.

As good as that round was, all three knew they were going to have to shoot even better to earn a state medal. The Louisburg High School golfers ran up against a tough course in Ulysses on May 23 at the Class 4A state tournament and left a little shy of their goal.

Welch, who qualified for the state tournament a year ago, had the best score as the Louisburg senior carded an 84 to finish 34^th overall out of 102 golfers at Bentwood Golf Course. The top 20 placers were awarded a state medal.

“I was a little disappointed with what I shot,” Welch said. “I finished in the same place as last year and I was hoping to do a little better. I played a pretty decent round, but I just lost it in the last three holes. Even though I didn’t play to the best of my ability, it was still an awesome experience.”

Svoboda, a senior, shot well through the first 15 holes, but the final three holes caused him some problems and he eventually finished with a 95 to come in 74^th. As for Martin, the Louisburg junior shot a 95 as well, to finish in a tie for 74^th with Svoboda.

“I think Ty had the hardest time of the three as he started off with a 45 of the front nine,” Louisburg coach Brian Burns said. “T.J. started off slow, but was on a great roll until he blew up on 16, which hurt him in his final three holes.

“Hogan played a great round and was in about the top-third of all state golfers, which is very respectable.”

The Bentwood course caused the Louisburg golfers some problems by how narrow it was, which didn’t leave much room for error, especially when teeing off.

Still, despite some struggles, all three golfers finished with a great experience.

“Competing with Ty and T.J one last time was a blast,” Welch said. “It was much better to go with them than going by myself last year. They are both awesome teammates and a big part of what made my high school golf experience so great.”

Hays won the state team title with a 312 and Rose Hill finished runner-up with a 315. Chanute’s Clete Carlson won the individual state crown with a 74. Paola’s Jordan Bulcock earned a state medal as he took sixth with a 76.