Some days everything just falls into place. You make good contact, the puts line up just right and your score is ridiculously low. The Tiger golf team was having a couple of those days in their last tournament.

Their practices, sometimes longer than 4 hours at a time, have honed their skills and prepared them for the big time. All of this hard work and determination clearly paid off as they took home the gold this past weekend at the annual Tiger Classic golf tournament.

Goals were set high as the Tigers competed against 11 other teams that were all equally capable of achieving victory.  One of the teams being the 2012-2013 state champions, Highland Park.

“My expectations were to play and have fun,” Sophomore Reese Nichols said. “I really wasn’t trying to shoot a certain number.”

The first day started and ended strong as the boys led three strokes ahead of Highland Park. Confidence increased throughout the players and a change in mindset was evident.

“We threw up some great scores on the first day and got a good position for Saturday,” senior Dawson McGonagill said. “We were ready to give Highland Park a run for their money.”

Each individual score brought the team closer to the win as they played on the course they were most familiar with, Texarkana Country Club. Mistakes occurred occasionally, but were made up quickly throughout the day.

“I made a lot of birdies and played very well, but at the same time, I could have played better had I eliminated some simple mistakes,” sophomore Grayson Jones said.

As the end of the round unfolded, the team began to realize how much time spent practicing ultimately showed.

“When I handed in my scorecard, Coach Brewer looked like so happy,” junior Russell Thomas said. “He looked like he had just won the lottery.”

The overall experience for the Tigers was one they will never forget. This tournament not only prepared them for future events, but essentially showed them how victory feels. Junior Garrett May led the team with the lowest score and felt the team played very well.

“We finally played to our potential, and it showed us that we can play with anybody,” May said. “I’m very proud of our team.”