HHS wraps up golf season with Fox's trip to state

After finishing in the top five at the Class 4A regional golf tournament at Clay Center, Holton High School sophomore Korben Fox finished the 2024 season for the HHS boys varsity golf team on the first day of the 4A golf tournament on Monday, May 20 at McPherson.

Head Coach Kurt Haussler said that while Fox’s 83-stroke, 13-over-par finish on the state tournament’s first day left him just two strokes shy of contention for the second day of competition, Fox’s score was still “a score to be proud of.”

“Korben had a good day of preparation on Sunday, May 19, and he felt confident with his game plan on a course that presents water, native grass penalty areas or out-of-bounds penalties on every hole,” coach Haussler said. “He did a great job off the tee on Monday and was really hitting his driver well and in good positions off the tee most of the day. He was just a little off with some approach shots and struggled to get a good feel for the speed of the greens.”

Haussler also expressed pride in the way Fox handled himself at the regional tournament, overcoming a double bogey (two shots over par) on one hole with a chip-in for an eagle (two shots under par) on a later hole.

“He was really good on and around the greens all day,” Haussler said. “When he missed a green, he was able to get up and down for par a number of times to keep the momentum of his round.”

The team’s 323-stroke total at regionals, while “just a little short of reaching our goal” of 315 strokes to qualify for state as a team, still represented the team’s best four-man score of the year, Haussler said, noting the score was a good cap to a good season in which the team made improvements every week. That, along with the fact that the team lost no seniors at the end of the season, bodes well for next year, he said.

“Korben Fox and (junior) Brody Meyer were our two leaders throughout the season and were consistently medaling in every tournament,” he said.

Haussler also praised the efforts of junior Maverick Hug and sophomores Jack Etzel, Brody Althof and Andy Kimberlin over the season, noting their progress that, like Fox and Meyer, included new personal-best scores.

“These boys love golf and really enjoy competing together,” Haussler said. “They know that the work they put in during the summer with their practices and tournaments will be a big key to their continued improvement. We’ll return everyone next season and will be adding some incoming freshmen to make for a very competitive team in 2025.”