High school golf: On day birdies tough to come by, Skyline leads after day 1 of the 5A state championships

Skyline’s bid for a fourth straight 5A state championship got off to a solid start during the opening day of the 5A state championship at The Oaks at Spanish Fork on Monday.

Skyline shot a 4-over 292 on Monday, and has a five stroke lead over second place Woods Cross (297) and a 10-stroke lead over third-place Woods Cross (302).

Skyline set a new two-day scoring record last season by shooting a 35-under, and while it won’t come close to that this year it played well enough to position itself as the team to beat in Tuesday’s second round which begins play at 10 a.m.

“Our guys are battle tested and prepared. We had to grind it out, proud of our guys resiliencey. On a day that birdies were hard to get it required mental toughness, we showed that. We are pleased with the lead, we hope to play better tomorrow,” said Skyline coach Kenny James.

Spanish Fork junior Jackson Rhees is the day 1 leader after firing a 4-under 68 on Monday, a round that featured six birdies and two bogeys.

Following an even par front nine, he birdied 10, 11, 12 and 14 to move to 4-under. He gave a stroke back with a bogey at the par 4 16^th, but birdied the par 5 18^th to finish with a two-stroke leading heading into Tuesday’s second round.

Rhees wasn’t the only golfer who posted a red number on Monday, as four other golfers are shot under par and in a position to fight for medalist honors.

Spanish Fork’s Noah Taylor, Lehi’s KJ Ofahengaue and Brighton’s Kieran Dunn sit in second place after shooting 2-under, while Box Elder’s Dyson Lish sits alone in fifth with at 1-under

Four other golfers sit at even par and in striking distance, including a pair of Skyline golfers, senior Charlie Thomas and junior Peter Kim.

Kim was the top returning finisher from last year’s state tourney as he finished fourth in 8-under, while Rhees was fifth at 5-under.

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Class 6A state tournament

Full leaderboard/tee times

At The Oaks at Spanish Fork

Team scores (top 10 made cut)

1. Skyline, 292

2. Spanish Fork, 297

3. Woods Cross, 302

4. Lehi, 307

5. Olympus, 308

6. Box Elder, 311

7. Orem, 316

8. Highland, 317

8. Salem Hills, 317

10. Brighton, 318

Individual results

68 — Jackson Rhees, Spanish Fork

70 — Noah Taylor, Spanish Fork; Kiean Dunn, Brighton; KJ Ofahengaue, Lehi

71 — Dyson Lish, Box Elder

72 — Emmitt Harris, Olympus; Charlie Thomas, Skyline; Toa Ofagengaue, Lehi; Peter Kim, Skyline

73 — Preston Cheney, Jordan; Lance Smith, Olympus; Braydon Griffith, Stansbury; Rex Poulsen, Woods Cross

74 — Parker Bunn, Bonneville; Jackson Shelley, Skyline; Sean Lam, Skyline; Tyler Barlow, 74

75 — Tyler Fraser, Alta

76 — Carter Papke, Timpanogos; Sean Lampropoulos, East; Bauer Kuemmel, Highland; Luke Gardner, Viewmont

77 — Max Togisala, Bonneville; Jon Howe, Woods Cross; Cooper Nelson, Salem Hills; Maddox Nielsen, Orem

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