Zach Gollwitzer, sophomore, picked a good day to play his best round of high school golf. With an even-par 72, Gollwitzer won the prestigious Webster Cup at Crescent Farms, a field that holds all the best golfers in the St. Louis Metro area.

Gollwitzer birdied five holes and even went to one under par at one point before ending his round at even par.

He said his accurate putting and driving helped him leave the tournament victorious.

“I really worked on my driving and putting before the match,” Gollwitzer said. “It helped because I hit a lot of fairways and made a lot of putts.”

Surprisingly though, winning was actually the last thing on his mind.

“I was just looking to finish in the top five or so,” Gollwitzer said.

However, with the win Gollwitzer became just the second golfer from MHS to win the Webster Cup, the other being Scott Schleiffarth, ‘04 grad, in 2004. His tournament and overall season efforts also earned him recognition as one of the Post-Dispatch Athletes of the Week.

Prior to the Webster Cup, Gollwitzer had been the medalist in four of the five conference matches. However, he said this win really let him know that he could compete with the best.

“It gave me confidence to know that I can go out and shoot a score like that [any round],” Gollwitzer said.

Eric Schweain, varsity golf coach, said Gollwitzer is a great golfer because of his work ethic and mental focus for every practice and match. He called Gollwitzer a complete player due to his strong physical and mental capabilities.

“Zach gets great distance off the tee and is very accurate in his short game,” Schweain said. “He also stays very even keel which puts him in the same mind-set with the great golfers from the past and present.”

Schweain also said this win showed that Gollwitzer could compete for a state title.

“The Webster Cup is the closest thing to our State tournament,” Schweain said. “[State] is a tall order, but if all the pieces fall into place, I know Zach can do it.”

Consequently, Gollwitzer was the medalist in the team’s next match the following day against Northwest. Due to a rule change by MSHSAA, Gollwitzer had to qualify for state with a top fifteen district performance and a top 12 performance in the newly added sectional round.

Gollwitzer was up to the task. He shot a 79 in district play and followed that with another 79 in sectionals to advance to the state tournament.

State began on Monday, May 16 at Twin Oaks  Golf Club in Springfield, Mo.

To prepare, Gollwitzer practiced his putting and driving.

“I know if I keep the ball in play and make putts, I can score well,” Gollwitzer said before the tournament.

Disappointingly, Gollwitzer came up short of a state title this year with rounds of 82 and 77.

Even after coming up short this year, teammate Dalton Jones, senior, said Gollwitzer has a good shot at winning State by the time he leaves MHS.

“But by the time he is a senior, or even next year, he is a for sure contender,” Jones said.

Jones credited all Gollwitzer’s success to his strong work ethic.

“Nobody I know works as hard as he does,” Jones said.