Glenwood Springs’ Lauren Murphy. (Photo courtesy of Brian Murphy)
Last May, Jennifer Kupcho completed an impressive two-year stretch as the Class 4A state girls golf champion.
But that was then.
In the now and in the future, Lauren Murphy is poised to be the big name in the 4A class. She is the next big thing.
The Glenwood Springs sophomore notched a top-10 finish in last year’s state tournament and made the CHSAANow.com all-state team. She was the only freshman on the list. Logic says she is one of the hot names to watch in 2016, but she won’t go as far to say that a state championship should be expected out of her.
“I wouldn’t say I’m one of the favorites,” Murphy said. “I’m just going to try and play my best and you never know who is going to be there or how they’re going to play.”
But for some reason, golf has this odd consistency about it. Kupcho came into River Valley Ranch as a clear favorite to repeat as the individual champion. Kylee Sullivan led a Cheyenne Mountain team that had the talent from top to bottom to take the team title.
This year, six all-state players return and will battle for the 4A title at the Pueblo Country Club in May.
The one difference for Murphy this season is that she hopes to be joined by her teammates so that Glenwood can also vie for the team championship.
“There’s a good team around her,” Demons coach Clem Michel said. “I think the prospect for her finishing better at state is good and taking a team to state is looking pretty good as well.”
The team aspect of high school golf is one of the most appealing parts of competing for Murphy. Throughout the summer and the fall when she is competing, it’s a very individualized game. The high school season gives her the chance to compete alongside her friends.
Lauren Murphy. (Photo courtesy of Brian Murphy)
“(During the high school season) I get to be with a different group of people than I usually play with,” she said. “I have a lot of friends on my team now and playing with a bunch of different people, I really enjoy that.”
It doesn’t hurt that she also lives and gets to play predominantly on the Western Slope. She has honed her game on mountain courses which provide regular challenges that most golfers don’t see much of.
But that won’t come into play this year.
The course at the Pueblo Country Club plays is a par 71. While bunkers and trees are regular obstacles on the course, the overall change in elevation keeps the course on a level playing field.
“I’ve played down in Pueblo before and the courses are pretty flat down there,” Murphy said. “I don’t think there’s any advantage or disadvantage to playing there.”
So it will all come down to who hits the best shots over 36 holes. Murphy is already known as a player to watch in 2016. If she comes away with a state championship, she’s looking at three years of potential dominance throughout the state of Colorado.
Girls golf preview
Class 5A
- Defending individual champion: Gillian Vance, Dakota Ridge (graduated)
- Defending state champion: Regis Jesuit
- Regular season begins: Mar. 3
- Regional tournaments: May 12-13
- State tournament: May 23-24, CommonGround, Aurora
- Returning all-state golfers: Alexis Chan, Jr., Rock Canyon; Delaney Elliott, Sr., Monarch; Jennifer Hankins, Sr., Legacy; Maddy McCambridge, Sr., Fairview; Jaclyn Murray, Jr., Regis Jesuit; Morgan Sahm, Sr., Grandview; Mary Weinstein, Sr., Regis Jesuit.
Class 4A
- Defending individual champion: Jennifer Kupcho, Jefferson Academy (graduated)
- Defending state champion: Cheyenne Mountain
- Regular season begins: Mar. 3
- Regional tournaments: May 12-13
- State tournament: May 23-24, Pueblo Country Club, Pueblo
- Returning all-state players: Kacey Godwin, Sr., Colorado Academy; Cassie Kneen, Jr., Colorado Academy; Hannah More, Sr., Mullen; Lauren Murphy, So., Glenwood Springs; Kiselya Plewe, Sr., Dolores; Erin Sargent, Sr., Silver Creek.