Thompson, Andersen end careers at state

Holyoke graduates Emma Thompson and Erin Andersen capped their three-year golfing careers with last Tuesday and Wednesday’s appearances at the 3A State Championship.

Head Coach Nick Flaa said the course at Aspen Golf Club was amazing and challenging.

“The golf course had obstacles on every hole, fairway bunkers, green side bunkers, trees, native grass and plenty of water to play around and over. The course didn’t allow you to take a break as there were surprises around every corner if you were not careful,” he said.

 Andersen started off the tournament with a 102, while Thompson shot 104.

Course management was a premium, according to Flaa, more so around the greens but also requiring some precision off of the tee. 

He continued, “Coming into the greens, the idea was not to short-side ourselves. The girls played aggressive to some holes when they could, but we were constantly looking at where you could set yourself up for the uphill chip or putt, giving yourself room to play and keeping some stress out of the day.”

 Andersen’s score for the day was only six strokes off her average of 96, on a course that Flaa and Assistant Coach Marcia Dalton thought was 10-15 shots more difficult than the typical course the Dragons competed on this season.

“Erin played a great round 1, she had all aspects of her game going but was hindered a little bit with her tee ball game which has carried to this point. Given that she wasn’t putting herself in the greatest positions off of the tee box, her iron play coupled with some solid pitches, she gave herself opportunities throughout the round on the putting surface,” Flaa said, adding that all in all her round 1 was fairly stress-free and solid.

While Thompson’s firstly round started off smooth, she had trouble on the greens.

Thompson’s ball-striking was there most of the day, Flaa said, but three putts plagued any momentum that was there for the taking. 

“She ran into a somewhat tricky situation on par 5 seventh but was able to bounce back while making her turn to the back 9, however, that momentum was stymied by the putting surface Aspen presented. There were also a few swings down the stretch that didn’t go her way, but there was no doubt she kept grinding away,” Flaa said.

The par 71 layout sitting at nearly 8,000 feet in elevation was a fair walk and tested all aspects of the game, according to Flaa. 

“We saw putts that were breaking 10 feet, putts that had to climb tiers and putts that even broke multiple directions.” 

With a fresh start on day two, Thompson knocked 15 strokes off her day one score.

After a rough start on her first two holes, Thompson went on to finish one under on her next seven holes.

“Birdies on 6 and 9 allowed her to make the turn at 39, 4 over par, arguably one the better 9 hole scores from the entire field,” Flaa said.

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