Golf, Anyone?

It’s a sunny Tuesday; the sun is out and the weather is warm. Fries are being made in the restaurant: it is the perfect day for us. We are the 30 Brentonians who board a bus from school to the beautiful Cowichan Golf and Country Club to spend our afternoons from 2:00-4:30 playing golf. You might ask yourself “Is golf a sport?” For those 30 Brentonians, it certainly is.  The 30 Brentonians vary from future PGA pros to newbies who are just starting the sport. The players vary in skill, but the attitude towards the sport is the same. It’s just like their academics, they strive to achieve the best that they can be.  They are helped by some fantastic coaches and staff who vary from the head of the program, Mr. Robinson, and his father, who monitor and instruct every student so they can hit the perfect shot every time. Even the owner of the course, Mr. “Stormin” Norm gets out and teaches the students and time and time he cracks the same jokes: it never gets old. You also have Mr. Brad Olson, who by day is an IT specialist (who supposedly won a furthest drive competition) who hones the competitiveness with the students (I’m still waiting for a rematch) and Ernie Niederer, our bus driver, who tries his hardest to beat his personal best and to make sure the students can as well.  The rookies who have never really played before include Grady R, Privett ’19, Alex B, Ellis ‘19 and Camille C, Mackenzie 18. You then get the amateurs who are practicing hard so they can get a spot on the team such as me, Thomas B, Ellis ‘18, and Hannah S, Hope ‘18. After those guys you get the Pros. These are the guys who are either out on the course having a good time or on the range mentoring the ones who need help. Our Captain, Austin N, Ellis ‘16 is a great example of this. He and others like Griffin FR, Ellis ‘18 and Lauren Y, Mackenzie 16 help him out.  While the coaches are instructing on the range, 12 lucky students go out and use their skills on the course. Whether it’s for fun or if it’s serious competition between the students and/or Mr Olsen, everyone is having fun. Sometimes it’s playing for loser-buys-fries-and-drinks or bragging rights. (I’m up 7-3, Hannah).  Most of the time it’s sunny and warm out and the grass is freshly cut making this a very enjoyable experience.  The group is growing excited as the school tournaments roll up. We will host the John Garvey Cup, where everyone is given a shot at winning, and the Staff-Student Challenge. Last year the winner of the Garvey Cup was Austin N and the Staff-Student challenge was won by the Students (of course).  See you on the fairway. Thomas B, Ellis ‘18