Overall, this hasn’t been quite the season that Collinsville golfer Jordan Bost was hoping for. But the Kahoks senior appears to be peaking at the right time.<\/p>\n
Bost and Edwardsville sophomore Michael Pfitzner each shot a 75 to tie for first place at the Southwestern Conference Tournament, held Sept. 25 at Stonewolf Golf Club in Fairview Heights. Both golfers had a bogey on the first playoff hole before play was suspended due to a thunderstorm.<\/p>\n
Edwardsville shot 310 to beat Collinsville by five strokes for the team title. Kahoks senior Zac Warner (76, fourth place) was among the other six medalists.<\/p>\n
“Jordan and I had a conversation that morning about his overall production for the season and I told him what I expected,” Collinsville coach Dan Munoz said. “I visited him on the course a few times to see how he was doing and he said ‘I’m doing fine’ so I left it at that.<\/p>\n
“I wanted to know what his score was going to be coming in and a kid from Belleville East thought he had a 78 or a 79, so that’s what I wrote into my scorebook. They’re already crowning Michael Pfitzner as the champion of the tournament and Jordan comes in with a 75 to tie him.<\/p>\n
“It was a good surprise, but Jordan went out and did exactly what I wanted him to do. His season has been up and down and a little disappointing by his standards, but this time he played to his potential.”<\/p>\n
Earning a share of the conference championship, especially in his final prep season, means a lot to Bost.<\/p>\n
“Like (Munoz) said, I’m starting to play well right at the right time,” Bost said. “I’ve always wanted to win conference and the last couple years I’ve just played alright, but this time I kept it together and I knew I was going to have a pretty good score,” Bost said. “It was just ‘fairway, green, two-putt’ and if the birdies didn’t fall, they didn’t fall.<\/p>\n
“I talked to (former CHS golfer) Nate Nottrott, who graduated two years ago, three hours before the tournament and he told me ‘I never won this, so I want you to win it now.’ He said it was my turn, so I just went out there and did what he told me to do, along with what coach Munoz said. He kind of jumped me a little bit before the round and it lit a fire under me.”<\/p>\n
Every part of Bost’s game was clicking at the SWC tourney, which hasn’t always been the case this season.<\/p>\n
“My short game has been pretty good all year and I’ve struggled with the driver a few times, which is usually my best club, and that’s when things start to go wrong,” Bost said. “I worked all summer on the short game and it’s definitely paid off.<\/p>\n
“My previous coach, Garry Henson, would always tell us that par usually wins in high school. I was 3-over at the tournament, but after I started 3-over early, I made something like 14 pars in a row.”<\/p>\n
Bost has been on the varsity since he was a sophomore.<\/p>\n
“I was actually really awful my freshman year,” Bost said. “The summer after that, I started getting into it because I was sick of playing bad. I worked hard to become the player I wanted to be.<\/p>\n
“This summer I played at Arlington (Collinsville’s home course) every day and I’d like to thank them for that. A lot of us got out there and they gave us free range balls. We’d pay for a cart if we felt lazy that day.”<\/p>\n
Collinsville was scheduled to play Tuesday in a Class 3A regional at Spencer T. Olin Golf Course in Alton. The sectional is Monday at Lick Creek Golf Course in Pekin, with the state tournament slated for Oct. 12-13 at the Den at Fox Creek Golf Course in Bloomington.<\/p>\n
“I just want to keep the fire going,” Bost said. “(Teammate) Matt Sockoch played well at conference and Zac Warner had a low score, so I think we can do pretty well. We were only five strokes behind Edwardsville at conference, so if we had made five more putts as a team, we could have been in first place. Hit greens and make putts – that’s all you’ve got to do.<\/p>\n
“I’ve never been to state and that’s always been in the back of my mind. We made it to the sectional last year and I didn’t play half as well as I wanted to, but this year I’m much more prepared.”<\/p>\n
Bost hopes to play golf in college and his first choice is McKendree University, where Henson is now the head coach and recruiting coordinator.<\/p>\n
“I would definitely love to be part of that program,” Bost said. “A bunch of my friends play there, including Nate Nottrott.<\/p>\n
“I’m not sure what I want to major in, but I want to be a PE (physical education teacher) and coach. I love the mechanics of the golf swing and teaching all that. I want to be able to pass it on like Garry did to me.”<\/p>\n