In his fifth year with the Carbon High School golf team, Robbi Etzel looks to teach his young team of athletes this season. “This year, we will have an incredible coaching staff with Ryker Smith and Lynden Nelson. They both bring great knowledge of the game and valuable experience to the team, he said.
Coach Etzel was then asked about his coaching style, to which he said, “I’d like to classify my coaching style as very freedom-driven. It’s difficult to sit the whole team down and work on one particular area of the game at the same time, because each athlete can be struggling with something completely different from day to day. We try to give each athlete the flexibility to tailor their practice around what they feel like needs improvement, and then go from there.”
He continued, “Our team is definitely in a rebuilding stage, as half our roster graduated last year; however, we have many familiar faces returning this year including Rydge Butler, Kolten Wilkinson, Dayton King, Case Barker, Cash Withers and Kyler Orth. Many of those returning this season have played in region tournaments in the past and have worked considerably on their game during the offseason. I truthfully see them bringing much needed experience and leadership to a young team looking to rebuild during the 2024 season.”
When asked what his team has done during the offseason, Coach Etzel stated, “most of our players are very self-motivated and driven to improve their skills during the offseason. Many travel across the state to play in tournaments during the summer, which is a great way to prepare themselves for the fast paced tournament schedule that begins in August.”
Coach Etzel is expecting another thrilling and competitive season for Carbon Golf, not only in the Region level, but the 3A State Tournament as well.
“Region 12, especially over the last several years, has been fairly competitive,” he shared. “As always, I expect Juab and Richfield to have a very solid team this year.”
He was then asked about what his expectations are for his team this year, “I always have high expectations for our team, as I believe most coaches do, and our goal over the past five years has always been a region and state championship. I don’t see that changing anytime soon, as I continue to see great young golfers join our program year after year.”
He ended the interview by answering what values he likes to teach his team.
“I think the game of golf itself teaches our team more about values than I ever could; but I will say, I think respect is one thing I like to teach our players. The game of golf revolves around respect; and it’s a value, in my opinion, that can never be overstated,” Coach Etzel concluded.