FORT SCOTT — Looks can be deceiving.
Take Fort Scott’s Woodland Hills Golf Course, which will serve as the site for the upcoming Class 4A Regional Tournament in May.
Iola High’s Mustangs were at Woodland Hills Monday for the Fort Scott Invitational for a preview of the course’s quirks and characteristics that they’ll face in a few weeks for much larger stakes: namely a spot in the state tournament.
Iola’s Chris Holloway, Xander Sellman and Titus Jones discovered that what seems like a straightforward course has plenty of hazards to make it difficult to manage, IHS head coach Jeremy Sellman noted.
Holloway was Iola’s top golfer on the day, finishing in a tie for 11th with a 94.
“Chris played well, but had a few miscues that cost him several strokes,” Sellman said. “His distance control was just a little off on his approach shots. Chris has grown and gotten stronger and is hitting the ball purely. He’s just missing his yardage on his shots. He’s putting well, and that’s keeping him in contention.”
Sellman was next, tying for 15th with a 100.
“Xander battled all day against the golf gods,” Sellman said. “He found himself in tough positions, even after hitting great shots. He would hit a great drive, only to find the ball had finished in a ditch, or his approach was blocked by a tree or a green-side bunker. Xander was striking the ball well, but the course just wasn’t giving him a lot of scoring opportunities.”
Jones shot a career-best 114 to finish in 30th.
“Titus continues to impress me every week,” Sellman said. “He is a hard worker and is very coachable. His improvement every week is a testament to those attributes. Titus just pushes through any adversity he encounters and keeps a level head when things get tough. If his play continues on this path, he will soon find himself in medal contention.”
The Mustangs were at Parsons Thursday, but results were not available by press time.
Iola will host its own tournament Monday with the Buck Quincy Invitational at the Allen County Country Club.
Tee off is set for 11 a.m.