A sport that seems to be overlooked here at Southeast is the Boys Golf Program. While in the shadows of more popular sports, golf has recently been active at state and last year had the individual state champion in Thomas Bryson. The golf team is coached by Justin Freitag, who has a set in stone practice schedule to help the team stay consistent and improve.

“We usually play nine holes then do drills afterwards which lasts about two and a half hours,” Freitag said. 

A typical day of practice helps the boys get better by just simply playing. Sophomore Owen Tucker knows what it takes to be dedicated as a golfer and what it takes to get better. 

“You have to be playing constantly, especially if you want to improve and if you want to play in college, it’s really important,” Tucker said. 

This shows the amount of grit and determination that is needed to be a golfer. It proves that you have to be dedicated to be a state champion and help your team make state. 

“Golfers need to have a ‘next shot mentality’ as they may hit a bad shot or catch a bad break. Effort is key if you want to improve, you have to put in the time,” Freitag said.

 The golfers may not see improvements right away but “especially in their short game” they see them by the end of the season, Freitag said.

The Southeast Golf Program is a true family and they love to golf with one another. To help them create a bond with each and everyone on the team, they golf with a different group of guys everyday. Junior Gavin Gerch expressed that  he doesn’t have a problem playing with any of his teammates.

“I like all my teammates. Typically I like playing with Thomas Bryson. He’s fun to play with because he’s really good,” Gerch said. 

Being on the golf team also affects their performance in the classroom as they have to miss school for tournaments quite often. There are 14 tournaments for the varsity level and that doesn’t include the state tournament which cuts into finals. This can cause some conflict with grades and having to catch up on assignments. 

“I missed like 20 days in the fourth quarter alone because I swung some JV tournaments last year,” Tucker said. 

Though the sport may seem like an individual sport it requires effort from all of the members of the team to have a successful season. 

“It’s definitely a team sport, whereas in the summer it’s more just kind of looking at yourself in individual tournaments and stuff,” Gerch said. 

The LSE Golf program has been very successful and hopes to have a lasting impact on the players and their golf careers moving forward. The coaches hope to create values and fundamentals for all of the players that are going to help be successful in the next level. 

“We want golfers to leave LSE with a great education and the tools to be successful in life. We also want them to leave with a great experience and relationships that will last a lifetime,” Freitag said. 

The golfers have been putting in a lot of work that goes unseen, but they are putting in the work. Make sure to support the team and to congratulate them on every success they have and to help them build on any mistakes they make.