HOWARD — Heading into his senior season, Mount Vernon’s Matt O’Hara had big plans.
The Yellow Jacket golfer had played in the Division I district tournament with his team the last couple of years and was wanting to take it a step further this fall.
A torn ulna collateral ligament in his thumb midway through the season put a major crimp in those plans, though. He missed a good portion of the season and thought it might end his high school career.
But, the thumb healed in time for O’Hara to play in a couple of matches as the season wound down. He found his groove at sectionals, firing a 76 to advance to the district tournament as an individual. Tuesday at Apple Valley was his chance to make it one step further.
Getting off to a strong start, O’Hara was unable to keep it going down the stretch and missed qualifying for the state tournament after shooting an 83 at Apple Valley Golf Course.
“Everything just kind of fell apart. I did not hit the ball very well all day,” said O’Hara. “I knew I needed some birdies to make the playoffs to go to state, but I could not make any birdies. I started thinking about my score and I think that hurt.


