By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief
Two-time junior State Qualifier Carson Griggs was selected as Sandite of the Week for his outstanding performances this season, culminating a Frontier Valley Conference title this past week.
Griggs got a head start on the rest of the conference, competing with the Oklahoma Junior Golf Tour ever since the last season ended.
Last year Griggs tied for 20th place at the OSSAA 6A State Tournament and since then he has placed top-five in eight OJGT tournaments and was Runner-Up at the Bailey Ranch Bash in September.
Last month Griggs competed at the Forest Ridge Spring Challenge and finished the two-round tournament in 157 strokes for fifth place, just six behind first-place finisher Fisher Vollendorf of Arkansas. He then competed at the Muskogee Country Club Spring Break Classic.
Griggs finished day one in twelfth place, sitting eleven strokes over par and eleven strokes behind Carlos Gomez in first. The second round was a whole different story. He started off with a birdie on hole one, bogeyed three after that, then birdied hole eight to finish the front nine a single stroke over par. On the back nine he shot par for the first six holes before bogeying sixteen. He made up for it immediately after with a bird on seventeen, then shot par on eighteen to finish one large.
Not only was his 72 the best score of the day by a two-stroke margin, it was the second-best score for either day, behind the tournament champion who shot even on round one. He finished with a total score of 154 to tie for fourth place, six strokes behind the champion.
Griggs continued his success into the school year and has been tearing up course after course. He tied for eighth at the both the Jenks Invitational and the Bishop Kelley Invitational, both in a field of over a hundred competitors. Both times he was only six strokes behind the winner.
His first win of the year came on his home turf, taking first place at the Canyons at Blackjack Ridge, shooting eight strokes under par at 63. In the past month he has also laid claim to victories at the 6A State Preview and the Frontier Valley Conference Championship. He shot two over par at Karsten Creek, where the State Championship will be held next month. He shot four under par at Indian Springs for the FVC title, a five stoke improvement over his prior performance there.
Griggs will return to action Monday in the Regional Tournament at Bailey Ranch Golf Course in Owasso. The last time he competed at Bailey Ranch he tied for 48th place in an off performance with rounds of 81 and 91, but in the past he has shot as low as 70. With a two-straight win streak, he is in good shape good shape to vie for the Regional title.
Click here to view previous Sandites of the Week.
