El Dorado’s boys’ golf team competed in the National High School Golf Invitational last week at Pinehurst in North Carolina. Junior Jon Brooks Elia led the Wildcats against the top players from around the country.
“My biggest concern going into the tournament was the difficulty of the course at Pinehurst. Pinehurst has held the US Open on the PGA Tour. I was thinking it would be very challenging,” Elia said.
“The competition was very eye opening. I realized that there are a lot of people around my age that can really play. It motivated me to work as hard as I can to be the best I can be.”
Elia shot a 244 over the three-day tournament, including a 77 in the second round. The boys event was contested on Pinehurst courses No. 7, 8 and 9. Number 9 was designed by Jack Nicklaus.
“I wasn’t very satisfied with how I played at the tournament. I putted pretty good but I wasn’t hitting the ball how I wanted to,” said Elia. “I haven’t been walking holes as much as I need to so I was getting pretty worn out by the time I made it to the back nine. Getting back in the hang of walking the course should improve my scores quite a bit.”
The Wildcats will enter the golf season as the reigning 5A state champions. Elia said he plans to get to work during the summer to help his club repeat last year’s success.
“This summer I have been working on my swing a lot. I haven’t played in any other tournaments other than at Pinehurst but I plan on playing in some coming up. The high school season is right around the corner so I’m focusing on getting ready for that,” he said.
“I feel pretty solid around the greens as far as chipping and putting but there is always room for improvement. My swing is still a work in progress but I’m feeling more and more confident with it.”