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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Strong season ahead


U-Hi golfer, senior Wes Millard,  lives out of the trunk of his car during golf season, playing several different area courses each week after school.
Steve Christilaw Correspondent

The fine line between work and play has blurred for Wes Millard.

The University High School senior has been an avid golfer since age 11, but these days, his work has taken away some of the joy he used to feel on the course.

“When I get done with work, I just want to go home,” Millard admitted. “I’m just not in the mood to play golf after I get off work.”

When he’s not playing golf for the Titans, Millard spends time at Painted Hills Golf Course, where he holds a part-time job.

“I’ve learned that when you work at a golf course, you kind of lose some of that excitement about playing golf,” Millard said. “When you spend all day picking up balls on the driving range, the last thing you want to do is go hit a couple of buckets of golf balls or play a round of golf. You want to do something else – something that isn’t golf.”

But his love of the game hasn’t evaporated completely, Millard said.

He was introduced to the game by his father and grandfather, both avid golfers. He said he has taken the game seriously since he was 11 and has been active on the Washington Junior Golf Association summer circuit.

Millard has been a four-year member of the U-Hi varsity golf team, receiving All-Greater Spokane League honors as a sophomore.

Preparing a golf team in the spring is a difficult task. For starters, there’s not enough daylight.

“It’s a rush, that’s for sure,” Millard said. “You really don’t have a lot of time right after school. You have to get to the course as fast as you can and hurry to get in as much work as you can.”

U-Hi is fortunate to have its practice course located just a long par 5 from the school’s back door.

“It really helps to have Painted Hills so close by,” Millard said. “We’re able to put our practice time into actual practice and not travel from the school to the course.”

When spring turnouts began, some area courses had yet to open. In reality, teams were expected to be ready to play before the courses were ready to accept them.

“The courses are just now rounding into shape,” Millard said. “They’re turning green, and the greens are getting a lot faster. You can have a lot more confidence in your game now.”

Millard and the Titans are heading into the meat of the GSL golf schedule, with weekly tournaments starting this week.

“We’re playing a tournament at Chewelah this week, and after that, we have a GSL tournament every week for the rest of the season,” he said. “We have the Inland Empire tournament coming up at the Spokane Country Club, so it’s going to be a challenge from here on out.”

Millard said he’s excited about his senior season and wants to finally reach the state tournament.

“I was leading after the first day of the district tournament my freshman year,” he said. “And then I bombed. I didn’t make it to state that year.”

As a sophomore, Millard was a stroke off the lead after the first day of the district golf tournament and again missed out on a state berth.

“That does eat at me,” he said. “Of course it does. I have to make it this year. That’s all there is to it.”

A three-time winner of the Painted Hills Junior Championship, Millard has a strong supporting cast around him at U-Hi this year.

“We have a good squad this year,” he said. “We have our freshman phenom, now a sophomore phenom, in Hank Frame. He’s a stud. We have Matt Mathison and Jack Hluboky along with Matt Montecucco. They’re all good.

“The great thing about this team is that we have five guys who can all break 80 on any given day. When they have a bad day, they still shoot 85.

“That’s a big thing in this league. You need to be that strong if you want to compete in the GSL.”

This may be the strongest U-Hi team he has played on, the senior said. That depth translates into stronger practices.

“You’ve always got that competition in practice,” he said. “You’re always pushing yourself to get better.”

Millard said he’s thinking about playing golf in college.

“I’m really thinking about walking on at Washington State,” he said. “They have a strong program down there, and they’re building a brand new course. It would be great to be a part of all that.”