Kelly Blair told Falls Country Club professional Tom O’Connell that she would come in with two birdies on her scorecard Wednesday at the Bronco Invitational.
Blair didn’t birdie any holes Wednesday, but she was far from upset with her performance. The Broncos sophomore carded a career-low 83 at the Falls Country Club and finished third overall.
“I stayed positive, and if I hit a bad shot I didn’t hang my head about it like I normally would,” Blair said, noting her familiarity with the course also helped.
Blair’s previous low was 88, which came earlier in the year in Grand Rapids.
“I knew it was going to be good, because I had a lot more pars than I usually do,” she said.
Virginia won the meet with a 357. The Broncos finished runner-up with 368. Hibbing finished a distant third with a 403, followed by Eveleth-Gilbert (411), Dryden (425), Mesabi East (468) and a second team from International Falls (488).
Virginia’s Emma Kishel and Melissa Hill tied for medalist honors at 81. Kishel was the outright champ, however, after winning the second tiebreaker between the two scorecards.
Following Blair on the Broncos was Maggie West, who tied for fourth overall with a 90. Malinda Porter finished ninth with a 96, Katie West was tied for 12th at 99 and Alyssa Bergstrom finished in 16th with a 103, just one shot off her career-best mark.
“We’re getting down to being competitive in the section,” Broncos head coach Bill Mason said.
After sporting a team last season that featured sophomore Maggie West as the oldest golfer, this year’s squad is already showing positive results from experience. The 368 was a season-low score, seven shots better than the previous low of 375.
“I just went out and had fun,” Blair said. “It’s more fun when you play better.”
