ETV News stock photo by Dusty Butler
The time for Emery to hit the course has arrived. The Spartans will start and end the year at Round Valley in Morgan, where both the Region 12 and state meets will take place. Region competition will be tough once more for Emery, as Carbon, Grand and Richfield held large leads over the Spartans by the end of 2019.
Emery’s program has taken steps forward in the summer, particularly with the number of participants. “We’ve got a pile of kids. We’ve got 26 kids,” said head coach Kasey Edgehouse. “In the past, they’ve only had between 10-15.”
Edgehouse, the long-time Millsite Golf Pro, will lead the high school program at Emery for the first year, but he has already built rapport with many of the athletes. This relationship also coincides with the reason for the increase in interest in the program. Several years ago, Edgehouse began a junior golf program to introduce the sport to younger players.
“I started a junior program to try to get the kids in the fifth through eighth grades into golf and working on the rules and their swings, so they can prepare to get into high school [golf], so when they get there, they’re not just thrown into the mix… It has been a big help for the high school team and also for the kids that are coming in playing.”
He continued, “The [high school] juniors will be my first class that I got into the junior program. I’ve been able to watch them and help them with their golf swings for a couple of years. I’m seeing some of the benefits of it. I’ve got two standout golfers and then I’ve got a pile of kids that are just behind them. My three through 10 guys are all real similar and they’re going to play good this year.”
Edgehouse and the Spartans are looking to make a big jump and move into the top tier of teams within the region. “With the scores that I’m seeing from my top five or six guys, I think we’ll compete for region. Morgan is always a tough competitor in state. In fact, I think they’ve won it the last two or three years. They’re going to be tough to beat at state.” Edgehouse concluded with the team’s aspirations. “Our goals are to compete and essentially win region and then see where we can get to once we get to state.”
Keep an eye on the Emery golf program as it continues to progress.