By Dan Karpiel

The Surveyor

The 2019-20 high school sports season kicked off last week and, as is the norm, it was the boys golfers who were first out of the gate.

The Berthoud High School (BHS) boys golf team, this year under the new leadership of Head Coach Dave Hunn and assistant John Perry, began their season with a pair of challenging tracks, playing at Windsor’s Pelican Lakes last Thursday and on Monday teed it up at the Broadlands Golf Course in Broomfield.

Despite being located in Windsor, land-locked in the middle of the American heartland, Pelican Lakes boasts more shoreline than any other golf course in the country. Thanks to four man-made lakes that surround the course and the Cache La Poudre River running through the layout, water comes into play on 10 of the 18 holes, placing a premium on being straight off the tee as well as on approach shots.

The challenging layout gave all 11 teams a stiff test and BHS finished in ninth place, with Christian Foxworth’s 94 pacing Berthoud’s varsity group. Matt Haberkon and Charlie Hoskins each carded 102 on the par-72 course. Hunn remarked the opening event of the season provides an opportunity to knock off some rust and was particularly pleased with Foxworth’s performance in the team’s opening meet of the year.

“It was awesome to see Christian bring everything he has to today’s event. Seeing the progress that he has developed over the summer and now take it to his first varsity event, very impressive. While playing and practicing almost every day throughout the summer, you can totally see the fruits of his labor,” Hunn explained. “We will continue to work with all players to round them into form before too long.”

Berthoud was back at it on Tuesday, playing in hot conditions on the well-regarded Broadlands course in Broomfield, with Holy Family serving as host. The par-72 track is spread out over a wide area, and the links-style design is reminiscent of Berthoud’s TPC Colorado and, like Pelican Lakes, water comes into play on nine holes. BHS finished the day a ways back in team scoring, but Hunn was encouraged by the growth and development of his squad, especially considering the Spartans have only been holding formal practice for a few days.

Hoskins led the way for Berthoud, shooting a 97, while Haberkon carded a 105 and Foxworth shot 109. “It was nice to see Charlie break the 100 barrier, however, we know that these three varsity players can perform at a higher level. These first few tournaments are really a way to knock off the rust and aid in our direction for practice,” Hunn said following the conclusion of play.

Last week BHS golf announced a partnership with aforementioned TPC Colorado where the new gem of a facility will serve as the office home for both Berthoud High teams, the boys squad in the fall and ladies, who will compete in the spring. Both teams will hold their daily practices at the course, which was completed in 2018 and hosted its first professional event, the Korn Ferry Tour’s TPC Colorado Championship at Heron Lakes last month. The professional event drew enormous praise from players and spectators alike, and the network of courses host professional events for the PGA Tour, PGA Champions Tour and Korn Ferry Tour, the PGA’s developmental league.

In announcing the partnership, TPC Colorado general manager, John Buser, told the Surveyor the Berthoud teams will be exposed to a PGA TOUR facility that, due to its challenging and well-manicured layout, will help elevate the players’ skill levels. Additionally, we believe this partnership will help introduce the players to potential careers in the hospitality industry; such as golf operations, agronomy, and food and beverage, and they will be invited to help during our professional event that we host each July.” 

For his part Hunn is very excited about the partnership with TPC Colorado. Hunn remarked last spring when coaching the BHS girls team and again this summer when he spoke about the beginning of the boys season, that TPC Colorado was one of the motivating factors in him accepting the head coaching position for the BHS teams. “To have a facility like that right here in town, with every thing that it offers, it is really going to go a long way to putting Berthoud golf on the map and helping our programs grow and develop over the years ahead,” Hunn said.

Berthoud will travel to Greeley’s Highland Hills golf course for their next event, held Monday Aug. 19 at the tree-lined par-72 course in the center of town.