Panthers golfers in the swing of things

Liberty Hill duo represents Purple-and-Gold on local courses

BY SCOTT AKANEWICH SPORTS EDITOR

Every year, once spring has sprung on Liberty Hill’s golf team, the Panthers can once again pick up their clubs and head out to local courses for practice and competition.

On this day, junior Rylie Clayton has just returned from playing a practice round at Crystal Falls in Leander, which happens to be the closest municipal course the team has at its disposal.

Without a home layout to call their own, the Panthers must play at the Leander course in addition to Delaware Springs in Burnet, which means the players are unable to practice as a team, only coming together for tournaments.

According to Clayton, having the ability to see her teammates on the course more o en would undoubtedly help morale and results on the scorecard.

“I think we’re a step behind all the other schools in our district,” said Clayton. “We’ve been fighting for an off-campus athletics period, but don’t have one yet. We have a group of good players, but are a li le underrecognized compared to some of the other sports.”

Senior Dhanush Kondapalli agreed with his teammate.

“I usually play every weekend, but by the time I get out of school during the week, it’s too late,” he said. “So, it would be great to actually get to practice with other members of the team – I don’t think we get very much respect.”

However, similar to Liberty Hill’s swim team – which also doesn’t have a home venue – the golf squad continues to grow in numbers and quality, said Kondapalli.

“We’ve go en a lot be er because we have more people out for golf now than in the past,” he said. “A lot of kids think golf is just for old people, but that’s not the case. We even have a JV team now.”

Clayton began playing golf while she was in elementary school and eventually started entering competitive tournaments.

“My dad always played golf while I was growing up and I always enjoyed going to the course with him,” said Clayton. “Once I got to middle school, I started playing competitively.”

Clayton said the mental aspect of the game can be just as challenging – if not more – than the physical part and especially difficult when a round isn’t going so well.

“It’s all in your head,” she said. “When I have a few rough shots, it takes everything I have to not slam my club, but I just tell myself I can’t have two bad shots in a row.”

Kondapalli seeks solace on the fairways in the form of escapism, he said.

“I look at golf as both a method of release and recreation,” said Kondapalli. “It lets me get away from it all and meet other people –it brings me relief.”

Of course, competitive tournament golf provides quite a bit more intensity than an average, casual practice round, which is when the pressure gets upped a notch or two and much focus and concentration is required.

“You have to be able to adapt to how you’re playing on that day,” he said. “Some days, it just feels different.”

The predicament one finds him or herself in will also play a role in determining the best course of action on a shot-to-shot basis, said Kondapalli.

“It really depends on the situation,” he said. “If the pin is in the back of the green,

I’m not just necessarily going to go for it and it also depends on how I’m feeling that day. Sometimes it’s be er to just play a safety shot because there’s a fine line between trying to make a hero shot and just playing aggressively.”

Clayton has an equally philosophical viewpoint.

“Usually, I’m pre y aggressive, but maybe not if I’m already having a rough day,” she said. “But, if my irons are on point, I won’t even see water and go for the pin.”