ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, October 16, 1996 TAG: 9610160038
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: KEITH POMPEY STAFF WRITER
The Glenvar High School golf team entered the Region C tournament as a five-time defending champion. But after the Highlanders lost five seniors off their 1995 team, few expected Glenvar to repeat Tuesday at Countryside.
Yet, that's what the Highlanders almost did before finishing second. In the process, Glenvar earned a berth in its sixth consecutive Group A tournament, which will be played Monday at Lonesome Pines.
George Wythe shot a 322 total and held off Glenvar by six strokes. Galax (332) finished third, followed by Giles (340), Holston (351), Bath County (352), Bland (353) and James River (357).
``All good things come to an end,'' Highlanders coach Bo Hagen said of the end of his team's Region C streak. ``But how can somebody not be happy qualifying for the states? Nobody thought that we would do anything. To finish second in the region against some pretty good teams, I'm proud of that. I'm very proud of the young people on our team. Brian Kitts is our only senior.''
Kitts' senior leadership didn't mean a thing to George Wythe.
Three Maroons finish ahead of him, and Wythe's No.4 golfer - Joannah Pattison - was three shots back.
``It's about time that somebody else finally won the region,'' said Brian Love, a Maroons golfer. ``It was frustrating to see them keep winning it. I didn't think that we were going to do it all at first. But we did and it feels great.''
Meanwhile, everything worked itself out for Highland's Eric Hooke.
After shooting a 3-over-par 74, the junior appeared to be the apparent individual champion.
After looking at the scoreboard, Hooke, 16, received congratulatory hugs and was interviewed by the media.
That's when the controversy started. The total on the scorecard of Galax's Jan Jaborek looked like a 75, but he said it actually was a 74. The players in his group agreed, setting up a playoff.
Hooke hit a one-foot putt on the first hole to officially win his first regional title.
``I was a little bit ticked when all the [controversy] happened,'' Hooke said after winning a playoff for the first time in four tries during his career. ``I'm more relieved than happy with making the putt. I just wanted to make everything work out the way that it should have. I never thought about losing. I knew that things were going to work themselves out.''
Jaborek, an exchange student from Germany, was satisfied with his second-place finish. He also believed he legitimately earned his spot in the playoff.
``I know that I was right, and they [his playing partners] told me that I had a 74 instead of a 75,'' he said. ``I'm happy that Eric won fair and square. I think he is a good player and he just played better than me in the playoff.''
Glenvar's Chris Evans finished among the top six individuals, taking third with a 75. Russ Johnson of Giles was fourth, one shot behind Evans.
``It feels great to qualify for the state, both individually and with my teammates,'' Evans said. ``I'm real excited about it. No one expected any of us to make it in the beginning of the season. But we made it.''
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