Hollar Solid In State Finals First Round
CARMEL – Jonny Hollar got off to a great start Tuesday in the first round of the IHSAA Boys’ Golf State Finals.
The WCHS standout birdied his first hole to begin his round at the Prairie View Golf Club.
Hollar then played a solid round the rest of the way to finish with a three-over total of 75. He sits tied for 22nd place on the leaderboard heading into the final round on Wednesday.
The number three played a huge part for Hollar Tuesday. The recent WCHS graduate was playing in the State Finals for the third time and playing his third competitive round at Prairie View, hosting the boys state finals for the first time.
It was also the par three holes that gave Hollar the most trouble Tuesday.
Hollar had two of his four bogeys on the day and his only double-bogey on the par threes. He also finished his round with three birdies.
“Jonny played solid a lot of holes today,” said Warsaw coach Ben Barkey in a phone interview. “The three putts that he had on the par threes were frustrating, but he was a fraction under his season average today. We’ll take it and are excited to come out and play Wednesday.”
“It was good for him to start that way with a birdie putt. Overall, he did not play bad at all. He had three bad swings today.”
Hollar shot a 39 in his first nine holes on the back nine at Prairie View. He then shot an even 36 on the front nine to complete his round. He birdied No. 10, 2 and 7 with bogeys on No. 11, 15, 6 and 8 and a double-bogey five on the par three No. 12 hole.
“The course was fair and challenging,” noted Barkey. “It was Jonny’s third competitive round here and he was comfortable on the course. It sets up well for how he plays.
“The reason I love coaching Jonny is he has the same personality regardless of how he is playing and that was the case today too. That’s what you want to see.”
“My expectations for Jonny tomorrow is that he will come out and play better than he did today. I expect him to clean up a few things from today.”
Hollar qualified for State after winning a playoff with three other competitors at the Warsaw Regional at the Stonehenge Golf Club last Thursday. He also played at the State Finals at The Legends Golf Club in Franklin in both 2012 and 2013 when Warsaw advanced as a team.
Spencer Klimek of Columbia City leads the field of 100 golfers after shooting a four-under 68 Tuesday. Klimek just finished his junior year at Columbia City, which shot 303 to finish as runner-up to Fort Wayne Bishop Dwenger at the Warsaw Regional. Klimek shot a 73 in the regional at Stonehenge.
A total of eight players shot under par in the first round. The trio of Austin Crowder of Center Grove, Drew Wood of Zionsville and Keegan Brennenberg of Muncie Central are two shots off the lead at 70.
Hollar is tied with five players in 22nd place with his 75. Among that group is Tyler Green of Columbia City. Green, who also just finished his junior year, shot a 73 in the regional.
No. 3 Westfield, which was state runner-up a year ago and state champions in 2013, shot 295 to lead the team standings after the first round. No. 6 Zionsville is second in the 15-team field at 297 with No. 1 Center Grove third at 298. No. 4 Fort Wayne Bishop Dwenger (302) and No. 5 Hamilton Southeastern (306) round out the top five teams.
No. 15 Columbia City is in sixth place after shooting a 310 Tuesday. The Eagles, along with Dwenger and No. 19 Homestead advanced from the Warsaw Regional at Stonehenge last Thursday. Homestead was tied for ninth place after posting a team score of 315 Tuesday.
Hollar will play the final round of his brilliant high school career starting at 8:09 Wednesday morning.