Woodmore senior Billy Blausey pretty much worked all his life to get to the state golf tournament.

But even though he made this last weekend's Division III tournament at Ohio State University's Scarlet Course as an individual, something was missing. His teammates.

“It's supposed to be a blast,” Blausey said. “It's not as fun when you don't have everybody there, but it's still exciting. It was a whole new experience. I wished we would have made it as a team.”

Woodmore took fifth at the district tournament, and only the top four advanced to the state tournament. Blausey and junior teammate Mikayla Baer both made it as individuals. Baer competed in the Division II girls’ state tournament at OSU's Gray Course.

After tying for 10th place last year, Baer tied for fourth on Oct. 14-15 in Columbus. She shot a 5-over 75 on Friday and battled windy conditions to shoot an 80 on the second day for a 155 total.

Baer finished nine strokes behind state champion Haylee Hartford, a freshman from Warren John F. Kennedy.

“I thought it was pretty successful,” Baer said of her weekend. “When there are over 300 schools that compete and only 12 teams and individuals get there, I think taking fourth was impressive. I wasn't disappointed.”

Every golfer at this year's boys and girls’ state tournament had to deal with 30 mph wind and 50 mph gusts during the second round on Saturday.

“It was ridiculously windy,” Baer said. “That was the most wind I've ever played in. The greens are really hard to read. With the wind, if you're sitting over a putt and a gust came, it took over your ball. I lipped out a lot more than I should have. It was just a little bit frustrating.”

It was a lot frustrating for Blausey, who had never played the Scarlet Course before, let alone in those conditions. Blausey averaged 80 strokes for 18 holes this season as Wildcats coach Steve Burner's No. 1 man.

Blausey had three triple bogeys and shot a 92 on the first day, but he bounced back to shoot an 86 on the second day for a 178 total. He finished 35th out of 72 qualifiers.

“I don't want to make excuses,” Blausey said, “but the wind makes a difference for me. I hit the ball really high and I have to switch my swing to hit the ball low when there's wind. That was my first time playing that course and those were the worst conditions I've ever played in. It was the hardest course I've ever played.

“There were 71 separate bunkers, and that was more than I've seen the entire golf season combined. I did my best to prepare. I've worked hard for several years to get to state, and I did that. It's a privilege just to go down to state, and I wanted to do well. I thought I had the ability to shoot 84 both days.”

Burner said Blausey would have shot better had he played at the state tournament in the past.

“It was a whole new experience,” the coach said. “If he had been down there one other time, it would have been better. That course is a bear. That rough was thick and wet, and with the wind blowing, if you missed the greens, you were in a sand trap.”

Blausey said he was proud of the way he finished the last three holes of the tournament. He shot an eagle on 16, followed by pars on 17 and 18.

“I realized it was the last three holes of my high school golf career,” Blausey said. “On the 16th hole I hit a drive down the middle and then I hit my second shot to the green. The ball bounced twice and disappeared. I walked up there and looked behind the green because I didn't want to be disappointed, but the ball was sitting in the hole.

“Somebody gave me a break there. I got the 2 on a par-4, and I've never done that before. I've been close. That was a good way to top off my high school career.”

Baer still has another season of high school left to try to win a state golf title. She had an 80 average (from the boys' tees) for Woodmore this season and was Burner's No. 2 player.

“With her coming in in the top 10 last season, her goal was to win it all,” Burner said. “Deep down, that was her goal. Once she got there, she knew that top-five first team (All-Ohio) would be a great accomplishment. She had a big smile on her face when she was on the podium getting her plaque.”

Baer said she hit the ball well and was happy with the way she putted.

“It was a lot easier this year because I knew what to expect,” Baer said. “It's pretty wide-open course. I like links courses, but that's a great course down there. I tried to think positive. I'm excited for next year. I just want to keep improving. I thought I had a good season.”

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