Below are links to the two articles that constitute the RT's golf preview.
Their Timesland preseason top 10:
1. Blacksburg
2. Hidden Valley
3. Jefferson Forest
4. Rockbridge County
5. George Wythe
6. Franklin County
7. Lord Botetourt
8. Salem
9. Giles
10. Staunton River
Of note from the articles is the fact that only the four regional tournament team champions will advance to the state team tournament. When there were four regions in the past, prior to 2013, the regional runners-up would also go to state play. That was also true the past four years, when two teams would advance from each region. To restrict state tourney play to only the regional champions - in a sport like golf, where luck (perhaps more so than in any other sport) plays an inordinate role, and margins between good teams are razor-thin - goes beyond harsh, into the draconian. One or two kids have bad days in the regional, and one of the state's best teams (whomever that may be) could be sitting at home.
I suppose somehow, someway, a bean counter with the VHSL determined the cost of hosting eight teams instead of four at the state tournament was simply too much of a burden. I'd like to hear whatever reasoning (or rationalizing) was behind this decision.
http://www.roanoke.com/sports/high_...cle_0ce61c3c-3d3d-5a1b-a04e-db7a003fdaac.html
http://www.roanoke.com/sports/high_...cle_30fb8595-9aba-58b0-9324-8f6fbeed37c4.html
Their Timesland preseason top 10:
1. Blacksburg
2. Hidden Valley
3. Jefferson Forest
4. Rockbridge County
5. George Wythe
6. Franklin County
7. Lord Botetourt
8. Salem
9. Giles
10. Staunton River
Of note from the articles is the fact that only the four regional tournament team champions will advance to the state team tournament. When there were four regions in the past, prior to 2013, the regional runners-up would also go to state play. That was also true the past four years, when two teams would advance from each region. To restrict state tourney play to only the regional champions - in a sport like golf, where luck (perhaps more so than in any other sport) plays an inordinate role, and margins between good teams are razor-thin - goes beyond harsh, into the draconian. One or two kids have bad days in the regional, and one of the state's best teams (whomever that may be) could be sitting at home.
I suppose somehow, someway, a bean counter with the VHSL determined the cost of hosting eight teams instead of four at the state tournament was simply too much of a burden. I'd like to hear whatever reasoning (or rationalizing) was behind this decision.
http://www.roanoke.com/sports/high_...cle_0ce61c3c-3d3d-5a1b-a04e-db7a003fdaac.html
http://www.roanoke.com/sports/high_...cle_30fb8595-9aba-58b0-9324-8f6fbeed37c4.html