Legendary golfer Gary Player once said, “A good golfer has the determination to win and the patience to wait for the breaks.”
Rowan County’s Athena Singh embodied that idea at the KHSAA girls state golf championship. The event concluded on Saturday at the Bowling Green Country Club with Singh atop the leaderboard after an impressive nine-stroke margin of victory.
“It was such a great feeling to see her efforts rewarded,” Rowan County golf coach Jon Stacy said. “She’s not just a tremendous talent, but an excellent young lady. She’s very much dedicated to her craft, spending so much time practicing, going to events and tournaments, and just honing in her skills.”
Singh, who became a three-time Region 12 champion on Sept. 25, was the only golfer in the state final round to post an under-par round. The medalist did so in both rounds of the tournament.
“She treated it just like any other tournament,” Stacy said. “She went in there and handled business. That’s one of the things I respect so much about this young lady, there’s not a moment that’s too big for her.”
The first round teed off on Friday. It began with a pair of birdies for Singh, but she hit a snag on the par-4 third hole with a bogey, one of three bogeys Singh would tally.
“The first round, her driver wasn’t where she wanted it to be,” Stacy said. “That first round had a couple of bad swings for her, she put it in a couple spots where she got a couple bogeys because of where we put our driver. But at the same time, she didn’t let that impact her going up to the next hole.”
“She was just really quick to forget a bad hole or a bad swing,” Stacy added. “She put herself in good spots on other holes when she would put herself in a good position. and then really just maintained damage control.”
Singh recovered from her missteps throughout the first round, claiming three birdies on the back nine to finish Day 1 in first place with 2-under par.
“She doesn’t like to look at the scoreboard, so we just said to ignore it,” Stacy said about their conversation between the first and second rounds.
The second round started with a string of pars for Singh before hitting a birdie on the par-4 sixth hole. Singh went on to collect three more birdies on the round, with a pair on both the front nine and back nine.
The only setback was a bogey on the par-4 12th hole, but Singh improved on her first-round score by closing out the second day with a 3-under par round and a 5-under par total.
“She was focused on going out that second day and executing as best she could on that day,” Stacy said. “She just stayed focused and didn’t worry about the score. She knew that her coach and her Rowan County family were going to be proud of her regardless.”
Even though Singh has won the state championship to cap off her junior season, Stacy knows Singh will be looking to improve and challenge herself to make her senior year even better.
“But she’s so level-headed, she doesn’t get ahead of herself, and winning is more so the result, not the goal,” Stacy said. “Her goal is to always get better. She and her dad are already looking at improvements for next year. She’s always looking for ways to catapult to the level she wants to be at and play at that college level.”
Singh has already committed to the University of Houston once her high school career draws to a close next school year.
Another area golfer who placed high among the field of 89 was Boyd County’s Morgan Kennedy.
The Lions’ senior finished tied for 11th place with three other golfers.
“Morgan hit the ball great at Bowling Green,” Boyd County coach Missy Kennedy said. “We concentrated more this season on trying to finish strong, (rather) than what our score is and I think that was a good mental plan for Morgan.”
Kennedy encountered her share of obstacles on the course but highlighted her final round with a double-eagle on the par-5 14th hole. She finished the second round with an 8-over par 80 after posting a 5-over par 77 in the first round.
“Greens were extremely fast,” Missy Kennedy said. “Morgan struggled a little with the short game the second day, leaving her a little discouraged but overall she finished in 11th. … She hung in there and never gave up.”
The top-tier finish caps off a successful varsity career for Morgan Kennedy.
“Morgan had an awesome senior year,” Missy Kennedy said. “She had two wins and was able to make it through regionals, and semi-state for her sixth appearance at the state championship. Not only am I proud of her senior year performance, but I am also proud of her six-year performance playing varsity golf. Her grind and work ethic show what a hard worker she is and is passionate about the game of golf.”
Kennedy’s top-tier finish in the state championship puts her in the top 10 of the final Kentucky Golf Coaches Association All-State standings. She ended up tied for ninth place.
Not surprisingly, Singh topped that list.
“(It’s) pretty impressive for Region 12 to have two girls make the top ten again,” Missy Kennedy said. “Especially when competing with bigger regions out of Lexington and Louisville.”
Sacred Heart won the girls team state championsip.
Lexington Catholic’s Charlie Spiller won a three-way playoff to claim the boys state title.
Spiller earned the hardware after battling Pikeville’s Cam Roberts and Allen County-Scottsville’s Barton Rutledge in the extra session.
Madison Central took home the boys team crown.
