Norman takes 6A boys golf title as Tiger junior Sebastian Salazar claims individual championship

By Mike Moguin 

OWASSO - Norman made just enough right shots with a low team and tournament round score of 293 Tuesday, surging ahead of two-round leader Stillwater in the Class 6A boys state golf championship at the Par-72 Bailey Ranch Golf Course.

The Tigers finished with a tournament-low of 293 in the final round, which enabled their team to finish at 901 (303-305-293). The victory marks Norman’s first-ever state championship in boys golf.

Junior Sebastian Salazar, a dual citizen of both the U.S. and Venezuela, led by conquering the state individual championship after shooting the lowest round of the day with 2-under-70 for a final score of (73-73-70) 215.

“I even had some stretches where things didn't really go my way, but I never gave up and I just grinded it out the whole way, and putting was key,” Salazar said.

Winds had blown across the course on Tuesday, but the Tiger individual medalist was able to withstand it. Salazar has played in other tournaments at Bailey Ranch in the past.

“It was a bit challenging, but it didn’t blow as hard as it usually does here at Bailey,” Salazar said. “The course was more accessible than usual. The hard part was making putts on the greens."

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Dennon Norman (78-76-71–225), Quinn Robertson (76-72-77–225), Ben Campbell (78-84-76–238) and Benson Dichm (88-83-76–247) also played a role in the Tigers winning the title.

“Sebastian is a world-class player,” Norman coach Gregg Grost said. “He and his parents came to the United States, he is a dual citizen, he was born at the Children’s Hospital in Oklahoma City, and if you go to the Sarkey’s Center at OU, his grandfather’s statue is in there. So the bottom line is even though he grew up in Valenzuela, he is an American citizen.

"He has great ties to Oklahoma, to Norman, and he made a very difficult decision to come here because of the issues and strife in his country. He made that decision and his family supported him. There were a tremendous amount of things he had to give up, but I think he has strived here in the United States.”

With Salazar coming back next year as a senior, he intends to repeat as individual state champion.

“That’s the goal now,” he said. “I didn’t have a lot of confidence going into this week, but I got a good feeling on Sunday night, and it just paid off. It’s all about confidence.”

Norman was in third place after the first 18 holes and moved down to fourth after the second round when tournament play was completed Monday. The Tigers trailed two-round leader Stillwater, the East regional champion last week, by seven strokes heading into the final round Tuesday before rallying to overcome that deficit to win by six shots.

The Pioneers settled for the runner-up trophy with (302-299-306) 907 swings, and Norman North, last year’s champion, took third with (304-303-305) 912.

“By finishing in fourth place (Monday), that meant we were the first group out this morning. We finished an hour earlier because we were prepared; that makes a difference when the wind starts kicking up. The players understood the first person to the clubhouse had a good chance to win,” said Grost, a former coach of the University of Oklahoma men’s golf program.

“They followed the game plan impeccably. We were not going to get in front of ourselves. They’re in incredible, physical shape that started last August. They work out four days a week and they just all keep together."

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Finishing behind Salazar was second-place medalist Parker Sands of Edmond North (71-72-73–216), third-placer Josh Stuart of Norman North (73-72-73–217), and C.J. Phillips of Edmond Santa Fe (70-73-75–218), who took fourth.

Grant Gudgel of Stillwater, the 2022 individual state champion, shot 1-under-71 in the second round Monday, landing him fourth place with 144 shots, sitting behind Phillips, Sands, and Stuart, who were tied for first with 143. But a 3-under-75 performance dropped Gudgel to a fifth-place finish.

Salazar has summer plans to play tournaments in Venezuela.

State Boys Golf Roundup

Class 5A

Duncan is back-to-back state champions, as they won the Class 5A state tournament by 19 strokes over Bishop Kelley. Duncan shot a 915 and Bishop Kelley shot a 934.

The Demons had home course advantage, as it was played at the Territory Golf and Country Club in Duncan. The individual champion is Will Hennessee from Bishop Kelley, who shot a 209, which was three strokes better than the runner-up in Baylor Bostick from Duncan, who carded a 212.

Class 4A

Heritage Hall was going for a three-peat, but was denied by one shot by Oklahoma Christian School at Prairie West Golf Course in Weatherford. Heritage Hall shot three strokes better than OCS in the final round, but still fell one stroke short.

The Chargers finished with a team total of 880, and the Saints finished with a team total of 379. OCS senior Ryder Cowan, an Oklahoma commit, won the state tournament by holding off a freshman from Heritage Hall in Ben Lathrop.

Both golfers shot 68 in their final two rounds of golf, but the first round made all the difference, as Cowan shot a 67 and Lathrop shot a 69.

Class 3A

Plainview wiped away Class 3A and won its eighth golf championship, by shooting a team total of 899, at Lakeview Club in Ardmore. The Indians won by 49 strokes, as Kingfisher finished second as a team, with a score of 948.

For the individual portion, three rounds of golf was not enough to decide a winner, as Christian Johnson from Christian Heritage Academy and Bliss Newton from Lone Grove both finished with a 216. It took three holes to decide a winner, but Johnson won the third hole, which earned him a first-place medal.

Class 2A

Community Christian won its first boys golf title in school history, as the Royals finished with a team round of 875 by 26 shots at Lake Hefner’s North Course. Latta came in second place with a score of 901.

Collin Bond from CCS won the individual title in dominating fashion. The junior Oklahoma State commit shot a round of 63 Monday afternoon and won the tournament by 12 shots. His other two rounds were rounds of 67, and he shot 19 under par.