Postseason golf is here for Blue Ponies

It’s all on the line for the Havre High boys and girls golf teams this Saturday in Livingston, as the Blue Ponies compete in the Central A Divisional tournament.

Havre will join the host Livingston Rangers, as well as Lewistown and Belgrade for 18 holes Saturday at Livingston Golf and Country Club, with team titles and individual spots at next week’s Class A state tournament hanging in the balance.

And each Blue Pony team will have very different experiences.

The Havre High girls are a seasoned squad, with four of the five Ponies having past divisional and state tournament experience. And that makes them a legitimate contender for the Central A trophy.

“Lewistown is definitely the favorite going in,” Havre head coach Brett Gilman said. “But if our girls play up to their capabilities, if they all play consistent, they have a chance to surprise some people.”

The Havre girls indeed have the firepower to chase down the Eagles. Junior Teagan Fee has placed in the Top 5 at several tournaments this season, is a two-time All-Conference returnee, and earned Class A All-State honors a year ago.

Meanwhile, senior Regan Lammers and Grace Litzinger are playing in their fourth consecutive divisional tournament, while junior Kinzee Peterson returns with divisional and state tournament experience as well. Steadily improving freshman Jocelyn Staples rounds out the Blue Pony girls lineup.

On the boys side, Havre doesn’t have a single player who’s competed in a postseason golf tournament. That’s because the Pony lineup is composed of all freshman. So this week will be about gaining experience, while Livingston is probably the divisional tournament favorite on its home course.

The Pony boys’ lineup will feature Caleb Chambliss, Josh Warp, Nolan Lotton, Clint Owens and Hunter Velk.

“The boys have been learning how to play high school tournament golf,” Gilman said. “This season has been about getting used to playing in that format. They’ve all shown a lot of improvement throughout the season, and if they can get past their nerves this weekend, their scores will come down.”

Nerves are always a part of postseason high school golf, and so is the weather. Livingston is expected to be cold and wet this weekend, which will make conditions extremely tough on all of the golfers, experienced or otherwise. Still, Havre will battle it out for trophies and to place as many boys and girls as it can in the Top 15, which is the benchmark for qualifying for next week’s state tourney in Sidney.

The 2017 Central A Divisional is slated to tee off at 9:30 a.m. Saturday at the Livingston Golf and Country Club. Prairie Farms Golf Course in Havre is scheduled to host the 2018 Central A tournament.