3A Boys Golf: Evergreen Captures Team Crown; Cougars’ Long Takes Medalist Honor

PUEBLO – This is what domination looks like.

The Evergreen High School boys golf team placed four golfers in the top seven to run away with the Class 3A Boys Golf State Championship at Walking Stick Golf Course Tuesday.

The Cougars finished with a 12-under-par 420, outdistancing runner-up Resurrection Christian by 17 strokes. This was Evergreen’s second-consecutive golf state title with last year’s crown coming in Class 4A.

Evergreen’s powerhouse squad was led by senior Tyler Long who won top honors with a 9-under 135. His teammates, also seniors – Liam Houlihan was fourth at 142, followed by Luke Sabina, who tied for fifth at 144 and Lincoln Mackay who split seventh with a 145 total.

“All the credit goes to those four guys, they put in the work, and they love the game,” Evergreen coach Brad Garrett said. “They compete all year long in junior tournaments and golf is so important to them and they are so dedicated to it. The scores they put out there are super impressive.

“As coaches, we just sit back and watch in awe when they compete. The credit goes 100 percent to the boys and the work that they put in. It is super exciting to come out here again and repeat in a different class. This core group has been playing together since they were 10 or 11 years old. They play at the same club, and they practice and play together, and they have great chemistry. It is just fun to be part of it.”

Long, who tied for second a year ago in the individual 4A race, left no doubt this week by being the class of the field.

Long, who is committed to play at the University of Colorado-Boulder next year, carded a 67 and 68 on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively. He had nine birdies and no bogeys on the way to defeating sophomore Griffin Didier of Basalt by four strokes.

“This feels good, and the team won by a lot so that was nice as well,” the 6-foot-2, 170-pound Long said. “I was pretty comfortable all day. I wasn’t too nervous, and it feels good to check this box. I’m used to more birdies, but I made up for it with no bogeys. I had never played this course, and it was cool and if you keep it in play, it is not hard.  

Long, who became Jeffco League’s first ever four-time boys golf league medalist earlier this season, acknowledged he couldn’t have written a better script.

“This is what we were hoping for, and we couldn’t ask for much more,” he said.