The Boyle School boys golf team has brought home the Zone 1A banner.
The team of four boys competed in Westlock on Sept. 16.
Boyle School has been attending the zone tournament since 2008 but has never placed in the top three.
Larry Irla coaches the team.
“I use the term ‘golf coach’ loosely since I only got a chance to golf with a few of the boys during the summer,” he said. “I am not allowed to talk to the boys during the tournament, so instead of golf coach, I am more like their ride to get to Westlock.”
Irla said the team was formed with students who have played in the tournament before and experienced golfers.
“For each of the 18 holes, the best three out of four scores are counted,” Irla said of the tournament. “The boys do not golf together in a foursome but with students from other schools, so they do not usually have any idea how their teammates have done until it is over.”
Boyle student Colton Nikipelo shot a 104; Mason Negraiff shot a 102; Rylan Tkachuk shot a 102; and Jordan Sawka shot a 104.
“Together as a team they shot 282, which works out to an average round of 94 (par is 72),” he explained. “Boyle ended up winning the banner for the North Central Zone 1A schools and got silver medals for their overall performance.”
Nikipelo said, “We played to have fun — winning the banner was a bonus.”
Sawka said it was his first tournament.
“We had lots of fun, and I look forward to going back next year,” he said.
Tkachuk added, “Next year, I hope that we will win the banner and go to provincials.”
Irla explained that Boyle School would have gone to provincials if the 1A and 2A schools were kept separate in the tournament.
Negraiff said winning the banner was a good feeling, adding, “A piece of advice … ‘When in doubt, chip it out!’”
