The Masters Holds Special Meaning to West Deptford Golf Team

For even the most amateur golfers, the words, "The Masters" typically produce a sense of alertness, a smile or a memory.

The annual professional event, which begins this morning, is more than just a golf tournament; in some ways, it is golf.

So it should come as little surprise that the members of the West Deptford High School golf team perk up when they hear mention of it.

“Definitely (it’s a special week). We always like to sit down and watch golf,” said West Deptford senior Jordan Haines. "Being a golfer, sitting down and watching golf is just as fun. As a team, we always do something to watch it. It gets us pumped up.”

That tradition of the team getting together to watch the event was started by head coach John Cobb, who has fond memories of watching the prestigious event with his late father.

“Just hearing the music can choke me up,” Cobb said.

So Cobb has made sure his players understand the tradition involved in the Masters. Each year, the team meets during one of the four rounds and shares a meal together while staying glued to the television.

“We will definitely get together one day and watch the Masters because it is definitely the best golf tournament of the year,” junior Kevin Brockway said. “It’s a great week.”

All of the hype and attention the Masters receives can even serve as a motivating factor for the players while on the course, as Haines expressed.

“It definitely does, because you think about how golf’s surrounding you and you think ‘Yeah, lets go play,’ because you look forward to it more than you normally do,” Haines said.

Haines was on top of his game Wednesday at RiverWinds Golf Club in West Deptford, shooting a team-low 41 to lead his team to victories over Colonial Conference foes Sterling and Overbrook.

In high school golf the best four scores from each team are calculated to produce a team score. West Deptford’s Zach Vorndran (48) and Matt Santorelli (49) joined Haines and Brockway (44) to produce a 182 total. Sterling scored a 204, while Overbrook finished with a 225.

RiverWinds is appropriately named, as the swirling winds can be felt on every hole–and for golfers, on every shot. In many ways, Mother Nature creates a home course advantage for the Eagles, as visitors are often intimidated by the conditions.

“It definitely plays a big role because you always have, at minimum, 10 mile-per-hour winds here,” Haines said. “Teams come here and think there are some beastly holes, because you can throw grass up and you still don’t know what way the wind's going.

"You just hope to hit it straight and it stays straight. It is very intimidating, but when you play here all the time, you get used to it.”

That doesn’t mean the West Deptford players ever get truly comfortable. Brockway said the conditions never make for easy day, but added, “We at  least get to practice here each day.”

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Check out our full gallery of photos from Wednesday's match.

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West Deptford 182, Sterling 214, Overbrook 225

West Deptford: Jordan Haines 41, Kevin Brockway 44, Zach Vorndran 48, Matt Santereli 49.

Sterling: Dan Cro 53, Matt Gant 53, Ethan Snyder 54, Nick Hoffman 54.

Overbrook: Mike Green 51, Mike Siddall 52, Chris Degardenuer 60, Dave Tortu 62.