York regional players rely on experience

When things are going wrong, good high school golfers fall back on experience and maturity.

On a day when the weather went from bad to worse, Glenbard West senior Eric Boockford was one of those golfers who was up to the task. Boockford shot a 74 Tuesday at Oak Meadows Golf Course to advance out of the Class 3A York regional.

"I'm just more confident and more relaxed out there," Boockford said. "I played pretty well in 18-hole tournaments this year, and the confidence carries over. I was hitting the ball well and able to make better decisions."

Hinsdale Central won the team title with a 295, 10 strokes better than second-place York. Hinsdale South became the third and final team to qualify for Monday's St. Charles East sectional.

Hinsdale Central's Theo Lederhausen took medalist honors, shooting a 1-under-par 70.

Boockford was happy with his play for most of the day, despite the weather.

"I was playing pretty well," Boockford said. "I handled the weather well. I was prepared for it. I made good decisions and played the wind well. I was playing really well up until the last hole. I tripled the last hole, hit it out of bounds, but overall it was a good day."

Experience also proved helpful to Addison Trail sophomore Jimmy Jaskoske, who shot a 75. He's been in this spot before, having just missed advancing to the state meet last year "by a stroke or two."

"I've been through it before, so I've got the experience and I know what it takes," Jaskoske said.

That experience came in handy when things turned sour.

"It was a struggle all day pretty much," Jaskoske said. "I started off with the first hole tap-in birdie, and I figured it would be a good day from then on. I just had bad break after bad break, but it was bad conditions for everybody. I just kept grinding away."

Jaskoske had one other big advantage.

"It's my home course, too. I play here all the time," he said.

Glenbard East senior Jake Waas also enjoyed a good start, only to struggle over his second nine holes, when he shot a 43 to finish at 77, still good enough to qualify.

"The weather started to change, it got a little colder, the winds picked up a lot, rain started to come, and that started to affect me a lot, physically and mentally," Waas said. "I just really let it affect me, and then one thing led to another."

Still, Waas was looking on the bright side.

"I've definitely improved," he said. "I feel like I'm much more mature than I was last year. I feel like mentally, I'm kind of a wiser player now. I've seen what can happen when bad things happen. That 43 could have turned into an even higher number. It could have been worse."