Corinth’s depth led to a second straight golf state championship.
The Warriors held off East Central on Tuesday, winning by 10 strokes to claim the Class 5A title at the Ole Miss Golf Club in Oxford. The Warriors shot a two-day total of 637, and junior Occoee Pina was the individual medalist with a 3-over 150.
Corinth won despite senior Henry Huggins, who was last year’s state medalist, finishing 10th at 10-over.
“Our strength is having all six guys that can shoot low any given day,” Corinth head coach Rob Scarbrough said. “We don’t just hang our hats on one or two guys. Everybody in our six has been a medalist at one point in the last two years. …
“That comes with having four seniors. That’s some maturity, and they’ve played a lot of competitive golf. That’s definitely helpful on days like today.”
But a freshman, Brody Robbins, had a big hand in the victory, too. He shot a 10-over 161 for the tournament.
After falling behind early to New Hope in the first round, the Warriors rallied and led the tournament by three strokes over East Central after the first 18 holes. It was a tough go for everyone due to windy conditions and slick greens.
“There is not a single flat putt on this golf course – not one,” Scarbrough said. “When I say that, I mean in 100%. There is not one flat surface. It’s a bend or a break or a hill or a multi-tiered green, every single green.”
Corinth led by as many as 15 strokes on Tuesday, but East Central cut it to six at one point. The Warriors were able to command the greens with more consistency, though, which helped them win by a comfortable margin.
“At that point you say, par’s your friend,” said Scarbrough. “Just try to par or even bogey and kind of play match play with the guy you’re playing with and don’t give up too many shots on each hole.”
