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Moffat County golfer Arianna Anderson wraps state tourney with dual-day score of 231

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Moffat County's Arianna Anderson drives from the 4th tee at the 3A CHSAA State Championships at Aspen Golf Club on Tuesday, May 30, 2023.
Andy Bockelman/Craig Press

There were ups and downs in the temperature and the terrain alike, but Moffat County golfer Arianna Anderson went the distance to round out the season at the 3A CHSAA State Championships.

Anderson shot a two-day total of 231 to tie for 63rd out of 84 athletes at state on Tuesday and Wednesday at Aspen Golf Club.

The first round was better for the Bulldog junior, both in terms of her performance and weather, coming off some preparation that didn’t go as smoothly as planned.

“All weekend with practice I wasn’t doing good, and I didn’t do great in the practice round, but I still did a lot better today,” she said Tuesday.

With a sunnier sky keeping things moving, she teed off from Aspen’s 10th hole, notching a 56 on the back nine and tightening up slightly on her latter half with a 52.

She said the result was a great improvement over her outcome in Aspen earlier in the season.

“108 is better than last time I played here — a lot better,” she said. “I think I like the back better, but it kind of all blends together.”

Aside from a 9 on the second hole — her least favorite on the course — Anderson kept her scoring reasonable, including a birdie on hole No. 5, which surprised her.

“It has awkward placement for water, so I kind of have to hit it perfectly,” she said. “All the greens are different, and they’re all really fast.”

MCHS coach Tim Adams said she was slightly tripped up by her short game.

“She struck the ball pretty well, but around the greens she struggled. She had some decent chips, but then she’d get up there on those fast greens and they’d roll forever,” he said. “I felt like her back nine was better even though I don’t think her score was dramatically different.”

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After being tied for 49th in the field after the opening day, Anderson dipped on the leaderboard during Wednesday’s round.

Gray skies didn’t help, nor did sprinkles of rain, but the killer was another weather issue.

“The wind got me a little nervous,” she said. “We were all a little worried it would mess up our shots and I corrected for stuff I didn’t need to.”

Anderson shot 123, a number which was a mixed bag. Though the front nine was a battle — scoring 70 complete with a pair of 12’s — she trimmed the score on the back nine down to 53.

“It was the same holes I had problems with each time,” she said. “Me and Reagan talked about how if something’s going on in your personal life, it’s harder to stay positive and focused on my goal.”

Anderson and Adams were joined by recent graduate Reagan Hafey, who missed out on her opportunity at a third state event due to injury. Still, she supported her younger teammate by accompanying her on all 36 holes as well as providing a ball with a smiley face at the start of Tuesday’s round.

Adams was proud of Anderson’s effort even as the going got tough.

“I know she struggled a little bit today, but that’s to be expected,” he said. “She’s kind of new to this. I hope she had a good experience, that’s the main thing, something to build on for next year.”

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