State Champion Golfers Peak at the Right Time

Posted May 3, 2017 / Last updated October 16, 2017

Junior golfer J.T. Holmes had the lowest round of the Jesuit squad on Day 1 shooting a 71. He also tied for fourth in overall individual scores with a two round total of 146. Here, J.T. places the chip shot within inches of the hole on 16.

In sports, timing is everything. And no better script of timing could be written than the 2017 state championship run for the Jesuit golf team. The squad clinched the LHSAA state championship this week among eight Division 1 teams at Carencro’s Farm d’Allie.

View the Photo Gallery of the 2017 State Tournament

Shooting a 320 at the district tournament and a 300 at the regional tournament, all eyes were on the Jays as they approached Monday’s first round to see if they could shave off a few strokes to take control of the state tournament. And they did, by six strokes!

Senior Nolan Lambert maintained consistent play all the way through the tournament. Here he squeezes in a difficult approach shot on 11.

Juniors J.T. Holmes and Grayson Glorioso had brilliant first rounds, shooting 71 and 73 respectively. The team really came together as the other three golfers – sophomore Britton Khalaf, junior Jake Kuebel, and senior Nolan Lambert – all shot 75.

At 294, the team had a four stroke lead over Catholic High heading into Day 2. On Tuesday’s front nine, there was a bogey here or there, but all in all, the Blue Jays kept their composure and maintained even scoring near par or just over.

As they made the turn to the back nine, a few more bogeys started to appear on Jesuit score cards as the second day tournament fatigue began to set in. The good news though was that the fatigue affected all the schools in the tournament. Much can also be said for the team’s composure, as the few bad shots didn’t see any golfer blow up on the round into the 80s. The players just remained focused on the next shot ahead.

Kuebel and Lambert had the best scores for day two at 74, and the other three golfers were just a stroke or two behind. At 299, Jesuit had the best score of all the teams for the second round and even improved their lead to eight strokes from the first day.

Blue Jays Spirit was alive and well as golf team members welcomed their teammates back on the 18th hole. After the tournament the team celebrated their well-deserved state championship, Jesuit’s first state title since the 2009 – 2010 back-to-back victories.

Here is a summary of the scores at the state tournament:

Team	1st Day	2nd Day	Total
Jesuit	294	299	593
Catholic High (BR)	298	303	601
C.E. Byrd	301	306	607
West Monroe	311	301	612
Sulphur	308	305	613
St. Paul’s	308	314	622
Brother Martin	314	313	627
Barbe	319	310	629

Here are scores for the five Blue Jay golfers on the par 72 Farm d’Allie course:

Golfer	1st Day	2nd Day	Total
J.T. Holmes	71	75	146
Grayson Glorioso	73	76	149
Jake Kuebel	75	74	149
Nolan Lambert	75	74	149
Britton Khalaf	75	77	152

After the tournament, Coach Owen Seiler said, “The boys worked really hard for this all year long. I’m really proud of all our players on the golf team in that we were able to achieve our goals and play our best golf when it mattered most. This was a great year, and I’m looking forward to seeing what next year holds for us.”

The 2016-2017 state champion varsity golf team

Galleries

Golf State Championship, May 2, 2017

Holmes puts the 15th hole to bed with this put.
Glorioso places his ball on the green...
...and two putts to finish the hole.
Glorioso then makes his way to the par three 13th hole.
He comes back from over-shooting the tee shot.
Glorioso finishes 13 with a bogey.
Junior J.T. Holmes shoots his approach shot from the shadows on 14.
Diligent in his routine, Holmes sets up his putt on 14.
Holmes lets it fly from the tee on 15.
Holmes' drive on 15 landed him behind some bushes, so he had to get creative on the second shot.
Holmes surveys the green before...
...hitting a chip shot which just rimmed out of the hole.
With the tee shot hugging the right lip of the fairway, Glorioso recovers with the iron shot onto the green.
Holmes struck a beautiful chip shot on 16.
The entire golf team stands just off the 18th green to welcome the competitors home from the round.
Holmes is the last Jesuit golfer to come in on 18.
Jake Kuebel congratulates Holmes at the end of the round.
Players, coaches, and parents move to the clubhouse to watch the final scores come in.
Nolan Lambert awaits the final results.
J.T. Holmes receives his award for the fourth place tie for individual score.
The team receives their well-deserved trophy.
The team hoists the State Champion trophy into the air at the end of the ceremony.
Jesuit's 2016-2017 state champion varsity golf team
Khalaf then makes his way over to the tee on 10.
With a nice lie in the fairway, Kuebel handles his approach shot on 6...
...and takes a moment to line up the putt...
...which rolls within a few inches of the cup to set up his par.
Sophomore Britton Khalaf chips up an approach on Hole 8.
Khalaf makes the downward rolling putt to finish on 8.
On the tee at 9, Khalaf makes excellent contact.
While Khalaf was making his way down 9, senior Nolan Lambert was working his way up Hole 8.
Khalaf takes his second shot on 9.
Landing in the bunker, Khalaf whips through the shot with his sand wedge...
...and makes easy work on the green to finish 9 with a par.
Junior Jake Kuebel drills this shot from the tee on Hole 6.
Nolan Lambert, playing in the group immediately following Khalaf, takes his approach shot from the fairway on 10.
Lambert then lines up his putt shot on 10.
Junior Jake Kuebel takes his approach shot on 10...
While Nolan Lambert squares off on the tee at 11.
Lambert then squeezes his approach shot between the trees to land just off the green at 11.
Lambert sinks the putt on 11 for par.
Kuebel gets a hold of the approach shot on 11...
...and is all concentration on the green.
Kuebel swings through the tee shot on 12.
Junior Grayson Glorioso gets his start on 12 from the tee box.

Jesuit High School of New Orleans

State Champion Golfers Peak at the Right Time

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Golf State Championship, May 2, 2017