Golf teams tune up for Marmonte League tournaments
By Stephen Dorman sdorman@theacorn.com

BILL SPARKES/Acorn Newspapers SHORT GAME, LONG GAME- Thousand Oaks' Travis Hankins, above, uses his chipping wedge to put the ball safely on the putting green during Monday's four team Marmonte League meet at Los Robles Greens. Hankins finished the day with an 81. Below, Newbury Park's Barrett Goldberg hammers a drive right down the fairway. Goldberg's one-over-par 71 helped lead the Panthers to victory over Thousand Oaks, Agoura and Calabasas.

Consistency across the board helped the Newbury Park High boys' golf team defeat Agoura, Thousand Oaks and Calabasas in a Marmonte League match Monday afternoon at Los Robles Greens.

Barrett Goldberg fired a 71 for the Panthers while Kyler Sauer and Kit Nelson chipped in with rounds of 73 as Newbury Park posted a team-low score of 368 under sunny skies at the Thousand Oaks course.

"I didn't play my best today, but I was still happy with the way I played," Sauer said. "I had a couple of nice birdies, but there were too many bogies coming down the stretch."

Newbury Park junior Kyle Laddusaw posted a 75. Jacob Chastain's 76 and Trent Armstrong's 81 helped NPHS fend off a strong challenge from Agoura.

"I was even on the front nine and five over on the back," Laddusaw said.

The day's lowest scores went to a pair of Agoura golfers as James Gould and Michael Bassler both shot an even-par 70. The Chargers finished with a total team score of 374.

"It was a good round for me," Gould said. "I hit 16 out of 18 greens, so that really helped."

Gould said he was also aided by a two-putt scoring rule. Because the greens on several holes were being refurbished, if a player missed his first putt once reaching the green they were automatically credited with a two-putt score.

"The greens were a little rough, so the rule definitely aided us a bit," Gould said.

Agoura's Pat Lawyer posted a round of 75. Cory Ferren (79), Cory Wilson (80) and Patrick Yang (82) all kept the Chargers within striking distance.

Thousand Oaks finished third with a team score of 389. Senior Michael Hren shot a team-low 73 for the Lancers.

BILL SPARKES/Acorn Newspapers EVERY GOLFER HAS BEEN THERE- Newbury Park junior Kyle Laddusaw, above, reacts after just missing a putt Monday afternoon at Los Robles Greens. Despite the tough luck, Laddusaw posted a 75 to help lead the Panthers to victory. Below, Thousand Oaks' Michael Hren shows total focus while he lines up a putt. Hren's 73 was the best score for any Lancer golfer during the day. The first of four Marmonte League tournaments got underway Wednesday.

"It's a pretty good score, but I made a couple of little mistakes that hurt me," Hren said. "My chipping wasn't so good and my driving could've been a little better. Still, I had a lot of good things going for me out there today."

TOHS received a pair of 77s from Brian Tsai and Shane Langhans, while Derek Larson and Travis Hankins each shot an 81. Yuuki Kurisu finished with an 82.

The Agoura and Thousand Oaks squads weren't at full strength. Each team had a golfer competing in the Los Angeles City Junior Championships that afternoon.

Because of the Jewish holiday Passover, Calabasas played without a full six-man group and didn't factor into the final team score.

Andrew Jackson shot a teamlow 87 for CHS. Denton Williamson (93) and Kyle Criddle (100) rounded out the scoring.

All eight Marmonte League teams were in action Wednesday afternoon at Los Robles for the first of four league matches scheduled to be played over the next month. Final scores weren't available prior to press time.