Cary-Grove's Efflandt fires 33 vs. Rams

Cary-Grove sophomore Matt Efflandt was not bursting with confidence Thursday before the Trojans' Fox Valley Conference match with Grayslake Central at Stonewall Orchard.

"I knew this was one of the toughest courses we play," he said. "I was just hoping to break 40."

As it turned out, his score was closer to 30 than 40. Efflandt fired a 3-under-par 33 to earn medalist honors by 5 strokes and help Cary-Grove (157) defeat the Rams (171).

Efflandt's previous best nine-hole score this season was a 38. When Cary-Grove coach Kelly Muzzy saw the scorecard, he joked that perhaps Efflandt had only counted up eight holes.

"He had it going on today, especially on a track of this caliber," Muzzy said.

Efflandt began his round by sticking his approach shot inside of 2 feet for a tap-in birdie on the first. After a par at No. 2, he bogeyed the par-5 third, one of the easier holes on the course.

Efflandt was in great shape off the tee, but he duck-hooked his second shot and did not find the putting surface until his fourth shot.

From that point on, he was money. Efflandt birdied the fourth hole and followed that with three pars. He closed with consecutive birdies at the par-5 eighth and the par-3 ninth.

Although he was conscious of his score on the ninth tee, Efflandt did not get conservative. His shot on the 162-yard hole landed three feet in front of the hole before spinning back 20 feet.

"I didn't slow down," he said. "I stayed aggressive."

Once he struck his birdie putt, there was never any doubt where the ball would come to rest.

What was his reaction when it went in?

"I started laughing," he said. "The guys in my group started giving me grief."

Grayslake Central's Kyle Reckling was impressed with Efflandt's composure.

"He (played) insane," Reckling said. "I kept waiting for him to mess up and he never did."

Cary-Grove's Ryan Kwech (38) was the only other player in the field to break 40.

"I was able to focus; my mental game was strong," Kwech said.

The Trojans (5-1 FVC) received a 42 from Brian Colbert and a 44 from Scott Brady.

Grayslake Central (0-3 FVC) counted scores from Reckling, Andrew Wilson (42), Dominic Maggiore (44) and Mike Reynolds (44).

"I don't think we're playing to our potential, but I have a lot of faith in these guys," first-year Rams coach Tony Bussone said. "They can turn it around."