Walking onto the grass at Torrey Pines Golf Course, looking out over the ocean, players tee off to start their matches. The Boys Golf Team is swinging into League with high hopes for the rest of the season.

   “I feel really confident in our team’s future for the rest of the season seeing as each match our team average is getting lower and lower, placing us higher in the team rankings each week. I feel like we have a pretty good shot at reaching CIFs as a team,” said Junior Anthony Bortfeld.

   Being in Division II of Eastern League, there is some tough competition facing the team this year. “The biggest challenges this year are beating schools like Patrick Henry and Point Loma,” said Junior Christopher Ball.

  But the team has confidence they will go far this season, having high expectations for their upcoming matches: “I think we can go undefeated for the rest of the season, winning every game from here on out. Except for Patrick Henry; they’re the toughest team in our Division. They have really strong players, so it’s going to be tough to beat them,” said Senior Noah Bolton. As golf is a very mental game, improving one’s play comes down to the individual and the areas they see need refinement. “For me, challenges this season surround staying consistent on the course and not pushing my clubs any further than I can comfortably reach. I’m tackling this by obviously practicing a lot, but also taking it slow on course, looking at my options, choosing the best approach, and not rushing my swing,” said Bortfeld.

   “Golf is a very unique sport. One day you can be playing amazing and the next time you s*ck. You can go from having the best round of your life to having the worst round of your life. It’s both a mental and physical battle as you can easily get in your head and psyche yourself out, so it takes some mental strength when you make a mistake to move on from it and look forward,” said Bortfeld.

  Like every season, there are matches that stand out from the rest. Bortfeld said, “I think the highlight of our season so far was our match against Mission Bay at Torrey Pines Golf Course where we barely won 222 to 225. This match was a little nerve racking as we came in knowing we would have a challenging time beating them.” Bortfeld added, “The conditions of this match were fun as it was raining lightly and super foggy the entire match, creating some very unique golf conditions. I finished that match up with back to back birdies [shooting one under par, par being the predicted amount of strokes for a certain hole] and a par to set my score pretty low.”

   Individual records are also made at any given match, which is what makes golf exciting. “The highlight of the season so far I’ll say was my drive on the tenth hole at Native Oaks. I drove the green on a par 4, the best shot I’ve ever hit,” said Bolton. Ball recalled a particularly special moment at the teams fifth match, against Scripps Ranch, when Senior Max Anderson chipped in from 100 yards, “By hitting the ball straight on from so far he saved our team about four strokes. It’s a moment that happens maybe once in your life.”

   Because golf is an individual sport, the team stays connected through bonding and lighthearted competition. “We stay connected as a team by going to get food sometimes after matches, and just having fun joking around before and after matches,” said Bortfeld. Bolton added, “We have small competitions between each other every hole. Whoever can shoot lower this hole buys dinner or something like that.”

   The team’s goals remain the same every year, always wanting the best for each player. Senior Wyatt Horner said, “Team goals are to have everyone go out and shoot the best round they have shot.” Having fun and playing a game they love is what UC High’s Boys Golf Team is all about. Bolton added, “Just the community that’s formed around golf, and all the friends associated with it, getting to hang out with my friends, playing golf is my favorite part.”