OVERALL GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP: Radler Likes Extra Preparation
FAYETTEVILLE JUNIOR SET TO FACE OFF AGAINST STATE’S BEST
Posted: November 4, 2009 at 4:01 a.m.
FAYETTEVILLE — Micah Radler was halfway through her practice round Tuesday afternoon at Pleasant Valley Country Club in Little Rock when she stopped for a few minutes to chat.
Turns out, the Fayetteville junior didn’t mind that the Arkansas Overall Golf Championship was postponed more than two weeks after heavy rain pelted the course in mid-October.
“I think it actually helped me because I got to prepare longer,” Radler said. “The course, it’s stillkind of soggy; it’s not bad. But it would have been really hard to play in the conditions if it wasn’t pushed back.”
When Radler tees o◊this morning, she’ll attempt to outlast a fi eld that includes the top three golfers from each high school classifi cation. It’s a one-day tournamentamongst the state’s best.
But unlike previous years, the field will play only 18 holes instead of 27 because the Pleasant Valley course recently repaired its greens. That leaves less room for error and places more importance on Radlerto get her solid short game going early on.
“She’s not going to just overpower a golf course. She’s really good at keeping the ball in play and using her short game to score,” Fayetteville golf coach Kyle Adams said. “That’s pretty much what you got to do on this golf course. I really like her chances down here.”
Radler shot a 1-underpar 71 to carry Fayetteville to the 7A-West Conference championship in October. But to be considered the state’s best prep golfer, the junior must get past Conway’s Summer Roachelle, who beat Radler in a one-hole playo◊to win the Class 7A State individual title.
This is the first year Radler has qualified to compete in the Arkansas Overall Golf Championship. But Adams said he believes Radler is among the favorites to win, in part because of her ability to play well on a big stage.
“By the end of the year, when we get to conference and state, every year she’s played her best golf. She shoots around evenpar at that time,” Adams said. “She really rises to the occasion of the bigger events.”
Said Radler: “I think I do sometimes do better under the pressure. When the pressure’s on, I tend to feel a little better.”
Sports, Pages 9 on 11/04/2009
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