There is a very thin line between good golfers and truly great golfers. To be a great golfer, you must excel in every aspect of the game to be considered one of the top players in the country. The three named in the title are above and beyond when it comes to golfing talent, Sonnenschein, Olson, Houska and Bothun all separated themselves from the rest of a very talented pool of players in South Dakota, and it paid off for them. This week, they got the rare opportunity to represent their home state at the largest and most prestigious high school golf tournament in the country this week at the PGA High School National Championships in Pinehurst. For those that don’t know, Pinehurst is home to some of the most historic courses in the country, and is the location of last year’s memorable U.S. Open. This week, three of their many courses saw the top high school players in the country from almost every state come to compete for a high school national championship. To be earn the right to compete this week means you have had an incredible season in your state, but also that you have elevated yourself beyond the competition of that state. Sonnenschein, Olson, Houska and Bothun all earned that right through their outstanding play this season and throughout their illustrious high school careers.
Sonnenschein had an outstanding week and found himself inside the top-15 a few holes into his final round. He would finish shooting a 70 on No. 6, a 72 on No. 5 and to close out his week a 77 on No. 8 to finish a very respectable T47. Olson would have a tougher start to the week, shooting an 81 on his first day, but really buckled down and shot back to back 75’s to finish his week T140. Olson would hit what might be the shot of the tournament holing out an albatross (making a 2 on a par 5) on the 17th hole of No. 8, one of the rarest shots in golf. Nick Bothun opened his week with a 76 on No. 6, followed by a 77 on No. 5 finishing with an 80 on No. 8 to finish T161. Houska personified consistency finishing his week with two rounds in the 70’s (79 R1 & R2) and an 81 in round three.
Outside of Pierre, SD’s Derek Anderson also represented his state well finishing T78 with a 72, 77 and 73 in his final round.
Just making it to this week of competition is almost unheard of for a high school player. So for these five to not only make it, but play so consistently well under an immense amount of pressure is extremely commendable. Jot down all five of these names, as they will certainly be names to look out for in the years to come. If you would like to see the full leaderboard from the week of play, click here.
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