Freshman Carly Marshall was nervous on the first tee of the 5A State Golf Tournament on Monday, but you would never know it by the massive tee shot she hit in front of a small crowd.
There was a heavy dew on the ground and an overcast, humid day. The dew slowed down the roll of the ball on the drives that Marshall hit and made the speed of the greens difficult to read, especially early on, but Marshall played a great first round. She was paired with the defending State Champion from Grapevine, as well as phenomenal freshman from Frisco Independence. On day one, Carly hit an incredible 13 of 14 fairways. Marshall teed off of number 10, playing the back nine first. After her first nine holes, she was one over par, with the lone bogey coming on the par four 14th hole. She got up and down many times, showing her grit. She started her second nine by bogeying three of the first four holes, but got one back with her lone birdie of the day on the par five 7th hole. On 7, she hit a massive drive that gave her the opportunity to go for the green in two. She was just off the green, chipped it close and made the putt for the birdie.
At the end of the first day, Marshall shot a +3, 75. She had 13 pars and one birdie. She was tied for 15th place.
Tuesday, Day 2, was very different conditions. With a little later tee time, the early morning dew had almost completely dried up and wasn't a factor. However, it was the most humid and hottest day that we have experienced since the previous fall. Carly again teed off of number 10. This time she was paired with a University of Arkansas commit from Smithson Valley and another great freshman from Frisco.
With adrenaline pumping her opening drive went longer than normal and caught the fairway bunker. With a difficult lie, her second shot caught another fairway bunker, and incredibly, her third shot ended up in a green side bunker. She bogeyed the opening hole. After another bogey on the second hole, she hit her tee shot on the par three 12th within 8 inches of the hole. She made the short putt to card her first birdie of the day. She battled her first front nine, with four bogeys, three pars, and two birdies. She finished her front nine with a +2, 38. Her second nine was a tale of consistency. She had eight pars on the second nine, with the only blemish being a double bogey on the par five 3rd. She putted with confidence and was able to get up and down several times. Marshall shot a +4, 76 on day 2.
Her tournament total 151 placed her in 18th place out of the 72 golfers that played in the tournament. However, that 18th place can also be interpreted that Carly is the 18th best golfer in 5A in the State of Texas, out of hundreds, if not thousands of golfers.
Marshall is the first Lady Bronco Golfer to participate in the State Tournament in 5A. The Lady Bronco Golf Team and Lady Bronco Golf Alumni Tiffany Lange competed in the 4A State Tournament.
The 5A State Tournament was held at Legacy Hills in Sun City.