Beginning Friday, Sept. 4, Hinsdale Central’s varsity boys’ golf team competed at a two day national golf tournament in Scottsdale, Arizona against championship winning high school teams from both the US and Canada.

The event is in its sixth year and is sponsored by the athletic apparel company, Antigua. Both boys and girls competed in their respective divisions, with five people per team and the lowest four scores counting each day towards their final score.

Since only five people can play on the team, five team members from Hinsdale Central were selected for this special opportunity. These players were Michael Feagles, Grant Labedz, Kenneth Li, Brendan O’Reilly, and Drew Shepherd.

Also accompanying these participants was head coach Jesse Krueger, who is in his 10th year of coaching at this level. “Their work ethic [is what makes them very strong],” Krueger said, “They practice very hard and have a real willingness to work.”

Hinsdale Central placed third out of 23, with a combined score of 595 over the two days. Individually, Brendan O’Reilly, junior, placed fifth out of all the individuals with a one under par score of 143. The full tournament results have not yet been publically released.

“We got into the tournament because we won a state championship,” O’Reilly said, “It is a top high school tournament.”

The boys competed against 22 other teams. It was very important and exciting for them to be involved in something with competition beyond the state level.

“I like that in the state, Central’s team is the most competitive. Our depth of guys is unmatched. It brings out the best in everyone,” O’Reilly said.

According to Kruger, the tournament organizer has had Hinsdale on his radar for many years. “He watches state championships. He has been aware of Illinois golf for many years,” Krueger said.

To find out more about the tournament, you can go to anhsgi.org.