Donaldson won district title, then tied for second at regionals for state berth; plus 4 more make the all-area team
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Suwannee’s Ryan Donaldson is the LCR’s Girls Golfer of the Year. (COURTESY)
LIVE OAK — Playing a district warm-up match at Quail Heights Country Club in October, Suwannee freshman Ryan Donaldson had nearly aced the 17th hole to pull within one shot of Clay’s Taylor Young.
After an accurate drive on 18, the easy shot for Donaldson would have been to lay up short of the 18th green and avoid the two pines in the fairway that guard it.
Doing so would have ensured a par for Donaldson and depended on Young making a mistake to pull out the match.
But for the Lake City Reporter’s Girls Golfer of the Year, though, easy wasn’t going to cut it.
“She pulls a 3 wood and sends it,” SHS head coach Damon Wooley recalled this week. “She just threads it right between those pine trees and she’s right up on the green just below the hole with a perfect look at eagle.”
Donaldson, whose nine-hole average of 36 was the best in the area, didn’t get an eagle putt to fall that day, but the birdie still was enough to pull out the win.
And for Wooley, it showed the confidence his star pupil had in her game and why she will be a state threat for years to come.
“It takes a lot of guts to pull that shot off,” Wooley said. “There’s certain players who choke under pressure or they fold under pressure. I think she thrives under pressure. She’s the type of competitor, the type of player who’s not backing down from a challenge. That’s when she enjoys herself.”
For Donaldson, who moved to the area around Christmas a year ago from the Lakeland area, the round that sticks in her mind came at the Jill Darr Invitational at Hawkstone Country Club also in late October just before the district tournament, which she won with a 69 before finishing as runner-up at the region meet with a 71.
That day, Donaldson shot her season-low 67, thanks to a surprising eagle on 17.
“Everything was just clicking that day,” said Donaldson, who added her strengths on the course are probably driving and putting.
But on 17, after hitting a good drive, Donaldson shot her approach with a 5-iron within a couple feet of the hole.
She then, calmly, drained what she thought was a birdie putt.
“But it ended up being for eagle,” she said. “That was just a fun little thing that happened.”
In October, Wooley said he could tell Donaldson wasn’t aware it was a par-5 hole when she came up and started talking to him before heading to the green for the putt. It was only after she made it, when he and another golfer informed her what she had just accomplished.
“She was like, ‘oh, sweet,’” he said.
Other than craving the pressure, Wooley agrees that Donaldson’s strengths come in her accuracy off the tee as well as her short game.
As a 14-year-old, Donaldson doesn’t possess the length off the tee as some competitors. For example, when she shot a 74 and a 78 on her way to placing 11th at the state meet, her playing partners were always hitting it past her.
But what she has lacked in distance so far, she makes up for with accuracy.
“She keeps the ball in play off the tee the majority of the time,” Wooley said.
Donaldson added: “I know that if I can put myself in the fairway every single time, I give myself a chance to be on the green. Then I will always have a run at birdies and just being able to score really well.”
As she continues to grow, mature and develop, Wooley said he just doesn’t want Donaldson to try and chase distance. Additional length off the tee will come naturally with additional strength. He just wants her to not sacrifice that aim.
“Distance isn’t everything,” he said. “Does it help? Yeah. Does everybody want to chase it? Yeah. But most every coach is going to tell you they don’t want you to give up accuracy just to chase distance.”
What Donaldson is also going to continue to do is chase competition and tournaments.
She recently went on a two-week stretch in South Florida where she competed in a U.S. Women’s Amateur qualifier followed by the First Tee Miami Doral Junior Classic. After making the cut at the Women’s Am event, Donaldson placed third at the Doral Junior Classic, shooting a 74, 72 and 76 during the three-day tournament.
“She’s putting in the time, working on her craft,” Wooley said.
Working on her craft means her entire game, Donaldson said.
“This isn’t necessarily a game you can master,” she said. “You’re always learning something new. But definitely working on everything, trying to tighten everything in my game. But, most importantly, try to work on the mental aspects of golf. Trying to manage the highs and the lows.”
ALL-AREA TEAM
Ryan Donaldson
Suwannee, freshman
Had an area-best 36 nine-hole average and led the area at all three postseason tournaments as well. Donaldson won the District 2-2A title with a 69, helping the Bulldogs finish second, and she tied for second at the Region 1-2A tournament with a 71. That was good enough to send her to state, where she placed 11th at the Class 2A tournament with a 74-78-152.
Veona Osborne
Columbia, senior
Led the Tigers with a 38 nine-hole average and helped CHS win the District 2-2A title by shooting a 76 for third. She shot a team-best 76 to tie for eighth at the Region 1-2A tournament to help the Tigers finish runner-up to qualify for state, where she shot an 80-76-156 to tie for 16th at the Class 2A tournament.
Ashley Nelson
Columbia, senior
Had a 41 nine-hole average and shot a team-best 73 for runner-up at the District 2-2A tournament. She went on to tie for 27th at the Region 1-2A tournament with an 87 and then finished 45th at the Class 2A state tournament with an 87-83-170.
Karlee Gainey
Columbia, junior
Had a 43 nine-hole average and shot an 87 to place seventh at the District 2-2A tournament. She went on to tie for 20th at the Region 1-2A tournament with an 83 and then finished 55th at the Class 2A state tournament with an 89-87-176.
Claire Bond
Branford, 8th grade
Had a team-best 41 nine-hole average to lead the Buccaneers. She placed third at the District 3-1A tournament to help BHS place second and went on to tie for 25th at the Region 1-1A tournament with a 96.
COACH OF THE YEAR
Chet Carter, Columbia
Carter led the Tigers to the program’s best finish ever at state, placing sixth at the Class 2A tournament. It capped off a season where Columbia had a 14-1-1 record in dual matches and won the District 2-2A tournament by 82 strokes before finishing runner-up at the Region 1-2A tournament. CHS also placed third at the Jill Darr Invitational.