It was a challenging year for area golfers at the FHSAA State Tournament in Lake County in November.
But two schools once again placed most of their teams in the state tourney, and it’s the same two schools that dominate the 2024 Bosshardt Realty All Area Golf team for the second straight year.
The Suwannee Boys Golf team finished 14th overall in the 2A state tournament, and they have three of the five representatives on the boys side. Same for Columbia on the girls side, as they also placed 14th overall at state and also placed three golfers on the squad.
Suwannee boys placed second at the 2A-Region 1 tournament, led by senior Carter Cannon and sophomore Dawson Wooley. Both Cannon and Wooley tied for fifth at the regional tournament with scores of 75.
Cannon finished tied for 57th at the state tourney and Wooley tied for 62nd.
Cannon and Wooley are joined by teammate Ty Hurst. Hurst, a sophomore, tied for 13th in the regional tourney with a 79, and finished tied for 63rd at state.
The top area finisher in the boys state tournament in November was senior Tanmay Chandra of Oak Hall. Chandra followed up a tie for sixth at the 1A-Region 2 tournament with a score of 71, with a tie for 16th at state, shooting a 148. He scored two straight rounds of 74.
“Tanmay is super focused on golf and his future at NYU,” Oak Hall boys golf coach Frank Anderson said. “I’ve coached high school golf for 37 years and he is the most driven player I’ve coached. His preparation and practice habits are outstanding. Tanmay’s family support has been a key to his success. His future is very bright.”
The final member of the boys golf All-Area squad is Ryder Robinson of Buchholz. Robinson failed to make the state tournament but won the 3A-3 district individual crown with a score of 72.
The girls side for the All-Area golf team finds the highest state finisher on either boys or girls sides as well as a golfer with an extremely bright future.
P.K. Yonge senior Katelyn Huber finished third in the 1A state tournament with a score of 136, five strokes behind the individual champion Grace Xu of Montverde Academy.
Huber, who has signed to play golf in college with the University of Florida, took home a tie for third in the 1A-Region 2 tourney with a 70, just two shots back of the region champion. Huber won the 1A-District 5 championship as well for the Blue Wave in 2024.
This followed up Huber’s sixth-place finish at state as a junior in 2023, which also included a district title.
“Katelyn’s impact on the P.K. Yonge golf team and Gainesville area golf is unmatched,” P.K. Yonge girls golf coach Kelly Barrett said. “Her competitive spirit brings out the best in everyone that she plays with and though she always wants to win, she is gracious enough to help everyone around her get better. Katelyn will always be remembered as one of the best golfers to come out of the Gainesville area and we are proud to have her as a member of the Blue Wave family.”
Joining Huber is another top state finisher in Suwannee junior Ryan Donaldson. Donaldson, a repeat member of the All-Area Golf team along with Huber, tied for 16th at state with a score of 155. That was after a fifth-place state finish in 2023.
Donaldson won the 2A-Region 1 individual crown with a score of 69.
The rest of the girls team consists of golfers from Columbia. The Tigers were the top area team finisher at the state tourney, finishing 14th with a score of 734. They also placed third as a team in the 2A-Region 1 tournament.
Columbia junior Alison O’Brien was the Tigers’ top individual finisher at state, coming in tied for 29th with a score of 161. O’Brien finished 14th in the 2A-Region 1 tourney with a score of 81.
“Alison O’Brien was not only our team captain and lowest stroke average but is on track to be valedictorian at CHS,” Columbia golf coach Chet Carter said. “Coaching Alison for the last four years and watching her game progress each year through her goal-oriented dedication has been a pleasure.”
Joining O’Brien are Columbia teammates junior Megan Ruwe and sophomore Rayna Hardin.
Ruwe finished in a tie for 63rd at the state tournament, following up her 19th-place finish at the region tourney with a score of 84.
Hardin finished 79th at state but was right behind Ruwe at the region tourney as she finished 20th with an 85.
“Megan is the most energetic player I have coached to date and anyone who has been paired with Megan will attest to her positive and encouraging attitude,” Carter said.
“Rayna is one of my upcoming players as she develops her game,” Carter added. “She is my most improved player this year and if she continues to work hard on her game she could have a great season next year.”
Suwannee coach Damon Wooley and Carter were selected as the boys and girls coaches of the year, respectively.
All Area boys golf team
Tanmay Chandra (SR) Oak Hall
Carter Cannon (SR) Suwannee
Dawson Wooley (SO) Suwannee
Ty Hurst (SO) Suwannee
Ryder Robinson (JR) Buchholz
Boys Coach of the Year — Damon Wooley, Suwannee
All Area girls golf team
Katelyn Huber (JR) P.K. Yonge
Ryan Donaldson (SO) Suwannee
Alison O’Brien (JR) Columbia
Megan Ruwe (JR) Columbia
Rayna Hardin (SO) Columbia
Girls Coach of the Year — Chet Carter, Columbia