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West Valley City Journal

The Ridge Golf Course hosts 6A girls state tournament

Jun 10, 2021 02:17PM ● By Greg James

At The Ridge hole No. 1 leaves the friendly confines of the club house and dog legs slightly to the left. Its majestic views of the Salt Lake Valley can hardly be matched. (Greg James/City Journals)

By Greg James | [email protected] 

The Ridge Golf Course is earning a reputation as a great place to play. The girls state tournament was held this year at the facility.

They hosted the 5A tournament in 2019 and the 6A girls this season. 

“We have done such a good job they asked if we could do it again,” Ridge Tournament Director Brandon Ren said. “It has been great. We have always been a player development type course. We are a big proponent of development and girls' golf.”

In 2019, Timpview High School won the 5A Utah High School Activities Association’s girls state title. Jamie Connell from Corner Canyon was the individual medalist. In 2020, the season was, of course, canceled, but they chose to return again this year.

It has served as the host course for Hunter, Kearns and Copper Hills high school teams for several years. 

Hosting a big tournament at the facility is not a difficult task.

“We have been very efficient. In a non-Covid year we will have 60 to 100 tournaments. Our staff is pretty dialed in and they are well trained,” Ren said. “We hold fundraiser style tournaments and many customer appreciation get-togethers.”

The 18-hole course averages about 6,700 yards from the longest tees and 3,400 from the shortest. It offers five choices of tee box locations. It was designed to accommodate a beginner and expert golfer.

“That is a big part of the appeal of this course,” Ren said. 

The second hole is considered the most difficult. It is a 446-yard par 4 that has two strategically placed sand traps. The easiest hole can be No. 14. It is a reachable 414 yards. 

“The course can be difficult, but still is accessible for a beginner,” Ren said. 

The 6A girls found the course to be challenging. 

Davis High School trailed Lone Peak by four strokes headed into the final day of competition. They made up the deficit on the final four holes. Corner Canyon finished second and Lone Peak third after a sudden death playoff. 

Herriman junior Millie Terrion shot a combined two-day total of 144 to take home first place individual medalist honors. She had the only score in the tournament not over par. 

Herriman finished fourth overall as a team. 

Hunter High’s team finished 15th overall and Brenda Castillo was 24th. Cyprus’ Madalin Chandra missed the cut after the first day by one stroke.

The Gene Bates Design Group designed the course that was rebuilt in 2012 after the Mountain View Corridor was built to its west. The designers wanted to truly cater to golfers of all abilities. They have also designed Old Mill, Riverbend and Soldier Hollow courses in the state.

The Hunter girls team has never advanced to the second day of the tournament. They thought it was a possibility playing on their home course this season.

“I thought we really had a chance,” Wolverine's head coach Devon Cooper said.

Despite the state tournament loss, the Wolverines still smashed school records and won their third straight region title. Cooper attributes their success to the help of the staff at The Ridge. They donated golf balls and practice time to invest in the team.

“She has built a good program,” Ren said. “We love to work with her.”

Cooper developed a program two years ago to invite 23 girls to the team. Many were beginners, but her thought was introducing several to the game to develop interest in the sport. Her team has exploded and they have won three straight region titles.