High school golf is having a moment, both in the Bangor area and around the state.
Several local teams report more players participating than in previous years, and that surge in interest is also translating to lower scores on the course.
As high school golfers across Maine prepare for the Class A, B and C state championships on Friday and Saturday, teams like Bangor High School and Nokomis Regional High School will be looking to cap undefeated regular seasons with a state title.
“It’s our best season as long as I’ve been coaching,” said Bangor coach Chris Junkins, who has spent 11 years leading the Rams.
Junkins credits his experienced team with putting in the work in the offseason, and said the higher interest in golf across youth levels has been laying the groundwork for more kids playing high school golf.
“Compared to five years ago, there’s a lot more kids at the golf course playing golf,” Junkins said. “And it ranges from elementary all the way up to middle school kids.”
Matt Brown, who coaches the undefeated Nokomis squad, credited Nokomis Middle School coach Adam King for building interest and experience with the sport early for student athletes.
“We started a middle school program a few years ago, and that has really jumpstarted us,” Brown said. “It’s been awesome for me as a varsity coach, because every year we’ve been getting a ton of freshmen.”
The increase in numbers isn’t limited to this part of the state, either.
“A lot of the teams are significantly bigger than they have been in the past, and the quality of play, it follows,” said Brian Bickford, the executive director of Maine Golf, an organization that works to grow the game across the state.
A few factors are at play, according to Bickford and several high school coaches. Those range from the continued bump golf has enjoyed since the COVID-19 pandemic as people looked for ways to get outside and be active, along with the increased proliferation of middle school teams and youth golfing initiatives like Youth on Course, which provides reduced rates at participating courses.
“I’m not sure numbers have ever been higher, and we’re trying to provide access — affordable access — through the Youth on Course program,” Bickford said.
He and other local coaches also credited the courses that host high school teams for their practices and matches, like Fogg Brook Resort in Palmyra for the Nokomis team and the Bangor Municipal Golf Course for the Bangor Rams.
And now qualifying teams from the Bangor area and around the state will converge on Natanis Golf Course in Vassalboro for the state championships. The Class B final is Friday, and Class A and C will tee off on Saturday.
Bangor and Hampden Academy will be among the Class A competitors.
Local teams including Nokomis, John Bapst of Bangor, Hermon and Belfast will vie for the Class B title, with teams like Mattanawcook Academy of Lincoln and Dexter in the mix for Class C.
Junkins, the Bangor coach, cited John Bapst, Hampden and Hermon as other examples of regional teams with strong participation numbers.
Hermon’s long list of high school golfers was recognized as part of the homecoming football game festivities last week.
“Golf’s back,” Hermon Athletic Director Rick Sinclair said at the time.
What once may have seemed like an old man’s game is starting to get a lot cooler.
Bickford, who also coaches the University of Southern Maine golf team, agreed that the sport has had a renaissance of sorts. He recalled playing high school golf for Greely of Cumberland in the 1980s, back when there was just a single state championship without individual class divisions.
“It’s what the nerds played,” he said with a chuckle.
But now golf is getting younger and cooler. And Bickford said it helps that prominent athletes from other sports, like Newport’s own Cooper Flagg, have embraced the game.
“I think social media has a big part in that, too,” Junkins said, noting how his high school players follow professionals like Bryson DeChambeau online and closely keep tabs on trends like the newest golf equipment.
The increased access to golf year round at indoor golf simulators doesn’t hurt, either, both Junkins and Bickford said.
“It’s not just summer and it’s not just outdoor golf,” said Bickford, who made sure to disclose that he is a co-owner of an indoor golf simulator facility in southern Maine. “There’s a lot of opportunities to play year round now.”
Bickford says the high school game is enjoying a “rebirth” across the state, and that surge in energy and enthusiasm certainly applies to individual teams in the Bangor area.
Brown, the Nokomis coach, is excited for his Warriors team to compete for a chance to win its first ever state championship on Friday. And he’s also excited for the future of a program with lots of young talent still on the horizon.
“We’re gonna be good for quite a few years, I think,” Brown said.
