“We were a top five team all year. We had almost the most talent in the state, if not the most. We just couldn’t put it together at State,” Jon Hicks, varsity men’s golf player and senior, said.

Hicks was a part of the men’s golf team that finished in 11th place in the 2013 State Finals.  Hicks said the team is looking to win the State title this season.

Head Coach Richard Reid, in his first year of coaching the CHS team, said this year’s team is a talented and competitive group.

“I think we have a really good shot to do well this year. We’ve got six guys with an average under 40 and with unfavorable weather conditions. So, I’m really excited,” Reid said.

Seeking improvement from last season, Reid said mental toughness will be the team’s focal point. Reid said increasing the difficulty of practices and viewing adversity as a chance to get better will help the team accomplish this goal.

“Physically these guys have all of the skills that they need to be successful, but golf is more about mental toughness than most sports. We have a lot of drills that are intended to be tougher and more stressful than matches. I think the mistake you can make is just hitting balls, or just putting a little bit, and your practice activities are not authentic, so when you get on the course, it just falls apart,” Reid said.

In addition to mental toughness, Kevin Stone, varsity men’s golf team member and freshman, said the team is focusing on becoming closer and more team-oriented.

“I am a freshman, and I haven’t really been playing on a team. We’re just trying to get to know each other better, because we have four freshmen who made the team, and two are on varsity right now. We’re trying to get a better team atmosphere and work as a team not individuals,” Stone said.

Hicks agreed and said Reid is helping the team become closer.

“I think (Reid) creates more of a team atmosphere.  We’re not rooting against each other for roster spots; we’re all towards one goal. In practice we’ll play games as teams. Instead of always competing against each other, we’re playing with each other,” Hicks said.

Despite finishing 11th in the state, the men’s golf team went 12-0 in its 2013 regular season head-to-head matches.

However, Reid said he doesn’t care about the regular season head-to-head match records. In order to better prepare the team for the State tournament, Reid has increased the number of 18-hole tournaments the team will compete in and the difficulty of their regular season matches.

“I’ve actually made (the regular season matches) a lot tougher this year. We’re going to be playing the number one team in the state a couple of times in the regular season,” Reid said. “It doesn’t matter the result there. What matters is if they’re getting better every week and getting ready for the State tournament. I think at the State tournament we could really surprise some people this year.”

Hicks and Stone both said their team goal is to be State champions this season.

“If we stay focused, I know that we can do it if we all play as well as we can and work hard towards that goal,” Hicks said.

Similar to his players, Reid said that he has the same ultimate goal.

“Bottom line is, I hope we can win State,” Reid said. “I think we have the pieces there. It’s just a matter of if they fall into place the right way.”