BOY’S GOLF PLAYER OF YEAR
To say St. Cloud senior Gunner Green grew up around the game of golf would be an understatement.
Like most good young golfers, he started playing at a young age, took lessons and watched on television. But he also gained a unique insight on how professional players conducted themselves, as his father Damon worked as a professional caddy for PGA stars like Zach Johnson, Scott Hoch and Ollie Schniederjans.
It was the unique experience of being around the world’s greatest golfers and seeing the biggest tournaments – including four Ryder Cups – that cemented Green’s love for the game early. Still, by the time he started to reach high school, he wasn’t sure that he wanted to pursue golf.
“Being a kid and being around the PGA Tour constantly was really cool and I loved playing the game when I was younger. But by the time my early teens rolled around, I really started getting into baseball and was playing less and less golf,” Green said. “But then the pandemic hit and sort of shut team sports down. I started playing a lot of golf again and started getting pretty good at it, which resulted in me falling in love with the game again.”
Coming off a successful junior season for St. Cloud in 2021, Green said he worked hard at his game in junior tournaments and practice during the spring and summer. By the time fall rolled around, he was ready to excel his senior season.
And excel he did. Playing out of the No. 1 or 2 position for most of the season, Green won the Orange Belt Conference individual championship in October, shooting a fine two-under par 70 to lead St. Cloud to third place finish at the district tournament with a team score of 304. One week later, Green once again led the Bulldogs, posting another two-under 70 as St. Cloud finished fourth in regionals that helped St. Cloud earn an at-large spot to the Class 3A state tournament at Mission Inn.
Because of his standout play, Green is the Osceola News Gazette’s Player of the Year for 2022.
“It’s a great honor but I definitely want to share it with my teammates,” Green said. “No one was clearly the No. 1 player this year, and that competition made everyone better. They made me a better player and I would like to think I made them better too.”
Green mentioned just one regret in his high school career. “It was my dream to since my freshman year to qualify for the state tournament and when I finally got there, the tournament was shortened to one round because of the hurricane. On the day we played it was less than ideal conditions and when we found out it was only going to be a one round event, it sort of took something away from the experience.”
Still, Green says his senior year – including qualifying for states – was a great experience. “To just get there and know you were among the best high school players in the state, was tremendously rewarding.”
The possessor of a good driving game and a solid putter, Green says he was to continue in his golf career with the ultimate goal of turning professional. He has accepted a college scholarship at Central Alabama Community College, where he hopes to excel and later earn a Division I scholarship at a major university.
“Right now, I feel I am at good place with all my mechanics,” Green said. “One area I know I have to make improvement on is the mental side of the game. I need to work on my pre-shot routine and try not to think too much.”
The 2022 Osceola News Gazette All-County Team: Gunner Green (St. Cloud), Braiden Palstead (Celebration), Will Giger (Gateway), Alexander Owen (St. Cloud), Jeremy Bianchi (Celebration), Espn Pool (St. Cloud), Ethan Bordillo (Celebration), George Aguilera (Celebration), Ethan Parrish (St. Cloud).
