I was able to attend a local high school varsity golf tournament this week where Oak Ridge's Carson Cooper placed 1st.

The tournament was played in a span of two days including a final playoff consisting of five holes. I caught up with the champion himself to gather what it felt like to win.

"My thoughts were full of relief and thankfulness to God," Cooper said. "When the ball went in, I was just happy that it was over and excited that I won."

Cooper dominated the course with a 4-under par round of 68 to tie for 1st at a total of 142, then birdied the 5th playoff hole to defeat Klein Cain's Matthew Spaulding for victory. "Matthew is a great kid and a really good player, his whole team was there following him and cheering him on, so to sink that birdie seemed like I had just beat the entire world," Cooper said with gratitude.

Cooper's preparation required encouragement from fellow teammates and patience during practice. "I knew that I would have to work hard to have a chance of winning and that's what I did," exclaimed Cooper, "Luckily I have some great teammates and parents who push me to be the best I can and that helps a lot!"

The Oak Ridge golf team consists of many great players who work really hard all year in order to perform at their best. The coach himself was grateful and proud of Carson and the whole team for how well they did.

As for myself, I'm glad I was able to experience everyone's support for Cooper when he won. I was also able to capture some of the other teammates great playing pictured below.