Jared Southerland and Sam Gibson are in.

Both golfers qualified for the state golf tournament after their performances in the Region 4 tournament in Campbellsville on Monday.

Southerland shot a 1-over par 73, finishing tied for second. The winner, Taylor County’s Cooper Parks, shot a 64.

Southerland has beaten Parks a handful of times this season, but Parks wasn’t going to be denied on his home course.

“He won last year, and there was no way anybody would catch him (Monday),” Southerland said. “He shot a 64. On his last hole, he got a hole in one.”

Overall, Southerland was happy with his performance. He started strong with an eagle and birdie on the first two holes.

He was in a strong position for the outright No. 2 spot, but shot a double bogey on 18 to finish at plus-1 overall.

“I feel OK,” Southerland said. “I left a lot of shots out there, but I’m OK with a 73.”

Southerland won his conference tournament at Tates Creek last weekend, and he’ll move on to the state tournament next week. He’s strongly in contention for the All-State golf teams.

“It feels good to be there,” Southerland said. “Last year, I went to state and I feel like I had a decent showing. I was tied for 27th last year, and this year I’m really hoping I can get top five. If I play well, I might be able to compete for a state championship.”

 

Gibson makes state

 

For Gibson, making the state tournament as a senior has added significance.

“It’s awesome, obviously he’s been looking for this ever since he started playing,” Boyle County head coach Steve Adams said. “He handled the pressure really well. I’m sure those last three or four holes, we were in the final group, knowing he was in contention. That’s nerve-wracking, and he handled it really well.”

Gibson shot a 75 to place sixth overall at the region tournament.

“He played really, really well,” Adams said. “Every time he got himself in a little bit of trouble, he always came right back and made a great shot or had a good hole. On No. 18, he hit about a 15-20 foot putt for birdie to seal his spot in state. He played really well. You’re always going to get into trouble out there, but he did a great job battling back and keeping himself in contention. He did a great job.”

Gibson led the Rebels, who as a team placed fourth overall and were two strokes off of third place. Taylor County and Campbellsville placed first and second, respectively.

“The kids battled, played hard and we had a good day,” Adams said.