After the Pella boys golf team narrowly missed a trip to the state meet as a team in 2021, the Dutch bring back their core group of golfers from last spring with eyes for competing for a trophy in 2022.
The Dutch–and all other teams in the state, will face an uphill climb against defending champions Gilbert, who ran away with the team gold last spring and have several key returners from that team lining up again; but that won’t stop a hungry Pella team from trying to compete among Iowa’s best.
On the schedule for Pella to compete against this spring is the defending champs a few times — including at home, as well as state qualifier Knoxville who also brings back a large portion of their 6th place team. All three meet in a triangular on April 7th at Bos Landen, according to Head Coach Bob Fessler.
Pella’s boys golfers open the season on April 1st at an invitational in Saydel.
Key Returners:
Will Simpson – Class 3A 6th Place at State, All-State Selection
Pella is anchored by one of Iowa’s best individual golfers and a player that had a strong junior PGA season, which included a win at the Iowa Junior Open in August and a 2nd place finish in the 16-18 division for Player of the Year. Simpson signed to compete at Division I Troy University this upcoming fall. Simpson has eyes on several tournament wins, including the big trophy at the end of the season, but there are several excellent individual golfers he will face off against yet again at most tournaments.
Ayden Gordon – Class 3A 48th ranked player by Iowa Golf Coaches Association
Gordon made a leap from top of JV in 2019 to the No. 2 player in Pella’s lineup in 2021 after the COVID-19 season knocked out a potential state championship team with several seniors leaving. Gordon answered with a solid showing in his junior campaign, locking up several top five and top 10 tournament finishes and being a consistent scorer for the Dutch in all of their tournaments. Ayden averaged 83.8 strokes per 18 holes, with the goal of dropping that number into the 70s more consistently this spring and in the 30s for nine-hole tournaments.
Thomas Tangen and AJ Hoekstra – Started All 11 Meets in 2021
A pair of talented returning sophomores appeared in all varsity meets for Pella last spring. This duo may be the biggest key to what Pella can accomplish, especially if they themselves can become more consistent. Both showed flashes of potential, each posting nine-hole low scores of 42 and Tangen scoring an 84 in 2021 as his season-best. If this pair of sophomores can drop strokes more consistently and score in the upper 30s during nine-hole tournaments and in the 80s over 18, the Dutch will contend for a state tournament spot and possibly more in the months ahead. They have the experience playing with some of Iowa’s best No. 3 and No. 4 golfers — and both may put themselves in that category this season.
Teams to Watch
Gilbert – Class 3A State Champions
The Tigers are the best team in 3A returning. After dominating the state meet last spring, they’ll likely get a chance to defend that title close to home as the full tournament moves to Ames. Gilbert had three golfers finish in the top ten at state, including Brock Snyder 148, Joe Currans 158, and Sawyer Hansen 159 — all of whom return this year. Everybody is chasing the defending champs in 3A and will need to elevate their game to knock them off of the throne.
Solon – Class 3A State Runners Up
Sparty brings back three of the top 15 individual golfers at the state meet and they still finished 29 strokes behind the champions. Sophomore Jack McCarty placed 6th at state ahead of Simpson, and Mac McCarty and Frank “Jr” Haege tied for 15th at the final meet of 2021. Frank was an 1st team All-State Selection. Solon finished 64-2 as a team and has the pieces in place to give Gilbert and the rest of the 3A field a lot of competition again this spring.
MOC-Floyd Valley – Class 3A 4th Place
The Dutchmen from northwest Iowa were a sophomore heavy team that earned a top five finish at state last May. Lead by Davis Korver, First Team All-State Selection, MOC will be a junior led squad that will be poised to move into the top three of class 3A if they can replicate their end of season effort. The Dutchmen were ranked 6th for season average and will likely factor into the final tournament of the year again.
Knoxville – Class 3A 6th Place
Pella won’t have to go far to find excellent competition — the Panthers won the day at the nearby district meet in Oskaloosa (330) and followed that up with a strong finish in the final tournament. Sophomore Evan Smith — a first team All-State selection, finished 8th as an individual at state, just behind Will Simpson. Beau Leisure, Carson Uitermarkt, and Kail Arkema round out an impressive lineup. The Panthers are poised for a top five finish, and should be a frequent rival of Pella at most tournaments.
Waverly Shell-Rock – Class 3A 5th Ranked Team by Iowa Golf Coaches Association (did not qualify for team state)
Much like the Dutch, this talented team just missed the cut for the state finals. They faced a gauntlet of a district, coupled with Gilbert and qualifier Clear Lake. All but one of their top scorers returns, and they have defending individual 3A champion Hogan Hansen leading the way. Look for the Go-Hawks to make a similar path to the Dutch and find their way past the district meet and on to the state tournament.