Reuter seeks district title repeat for Clark Fork golf

CLARK FORK — As the season changes from winter to spring and the weather complies, the Clark Fork golf team can be seen practicing at Wampus Park, a course tucked behind the high school field.

The facility serves as a nine-hole golf and disc golf course. However, when the Wampus Cats start their season, the course isn’t in pristine condition yet due to the harsh winter. Pine cones, tree limbs and uncut greens are all obstacles the players encounter on each hole.

It’s not ideal, but it’s part of the challenges North Idaho presents high school golfers.

Cole Reuter is just grateful to have a place to hit.

“It’s better than not having golf at all,” he said.

The fairways are narrow and the lies can be quite unforgiving before the course is groomed for the summer months. However, head coach Brian Arthun said it tests his players’ accuracy and their ability to adjust on the fly, and it’s a unique situation that probably no other team in the state has to deal with.

“It’s not true to a regular golf course, but the tougher it is here, the easier it will be on a regular golf course,” he said.

In years past, there have been times when the opening event of the season has been the first time the Wampus Cats have stepped foot on a course, Arthun said. Thankfully, that’s not the case this spring.

The team was able to get out on the Elks Golf Course multiple times during spring break. Clark Fork hopes that early action pays off when the squad opens the season at 10 a.m. Monday with a scramble at Pinehurst Golf Course against a handful of league foes.

The Wampus Cats are five strong this spring. Reuter, Jacob Abbott, Carter Sanroman, Jaden Pierson and Landin Pierson makeup the small squad.

Reuter, Abbott, Sanroman and Jaden are all juniors, while Landin is a freshman. Just like the track team, the Wampus Cats have no seniors and no girls.

Reuter is the ringer on the team. The 17-year-old has been playing the sport since he was 9, and as a freshman he tied for sixth at the 2A state tournament, eight strokes behind the state champ.

Reuter was hoping to build off that success last spring, but the pandemic spoiled those aspirations.

However, just like any dedicated golfer, Reuter didn’t just pack away his golf clubs, he kept grinding.

Last summer while working to save up money for a truck, Reuter played around 20 rounds.

During the winter, he utilized the two putting greens and net he has set up inside his home to stay sharp. He even got a chance to play at Turtle Bay Resort on Oahu thanks to a family vacation.

Just a few weeks into the season, Reuter said he has already seen that commitment to his craft pay off. His short game is better than it's ever been and he’s getting a few more yards out of each club, he said.

“I’ve gotten stronger,” he said, “and I’ve been able to hit the golf ball farther, and that’s definitely a big help for me.”

Clearly, Reuter knows what he’s doing on the course, and Arthun said it’s nice to have an athlete like that.

“With him, there’s not a lot of coaching going on as far as telling him to adjust his swing or anything like that,” he said.

And that’s what Reuter enjoys so much about golf — the freedom. All the mishaps are on him, and he’s just fine with that.

“I love it that I really don’t have to get told what to do,” he said, “because in other sports you’re always getting told how to do it, but in this sport I get to do it like how I like to do it.”

When Reuter joined the team as a freshman, Arthun was immediately impressed with the maturity he brought to the game.

Arthun said Reuter possesses all the intangibles of a great golfer and a short memory when things don’t go his way on the course.

The mental part of golf is key and Reuter has that dialed in.

“He’s really mentally tough,” Arthun said. “If he hits a bad shot or two, it doesn’t faze him whatsoever, he just keeps on going to the next one.”

Reuter also has a job at the Elks this spring and he plans on using that to his advantage this season.

“I feel like it’s going to be a huge factor because my freshman year when I worked at The Idaho Club, it helped my game a lot,” he said.

Obviously, expectations are high for Reuter this spring. In 2019, he shot a 75 to claim the 2A District 1-2 individual title and he believes he can do the same this year.

Reuter wants to win every tournament he can during the regular season and would love to grab a state title, but a top five finish at the event would satisfy him, and hopefully get his name out there to college recruiters.

Outside of Reuter, Abbott and Sanroman are the only two other golfers with prior experience for the Wampus Cats.

Sanroman is also playing on the Sandpoint junior varsity baseball team this spring. Arthun said Sanroman has a lot on his plate, but he could contend for a state bid.

“He’s a really competitive kid and good athlete,” Arthun said, “and if things go well he can maybe squeak in there.”

With Landin Pierson being a freshman, Arthun said there’s plenty of room for growth, something he’s already seen.

“He has made a lot of improvement from the start of the year,” he said, “and it will be a good year for him to just get some experience under his belt and see how it all works.”

Given Reuter’s knowledge of the game, he often offers tips and suggestions to his teammates. He’s a mentor and has no issue taking the inexperienced kids under his wing and sharing his passion for the sport, Arthun said.

“Just like any sport that I’ve ever coached,” he said, “it’s important to have a good leader as far as someone who sets the tone and sets an example for the younger kids, and Cole does that.”

For once, golfers like Reuter could have a leg up on the competition in southern and eastern Idaho. The 2A state championship will be contested at Circling Raven Golf Club in Worley, a course the Wampus Cats will see multiple times this spring.

It’s definitely an advantage Arthun hopes the team can capitalize on.

“The Circling Raven is no joke,” he said. “It’s one of those courses that it can get you if you’re not ready for it.”

After having last season taken away, Reuter is really looking forward to hitting the course and making some noise this spring.

“I just got to come out with a dedicated attitude to thrive and try to be the best,” he said.

Arthun said golf is a sport that requires attention year-round, so he expects the team will be knocking off a little rust in the first couple tournaments.

“It’s a roller coaster,” he joked about the game of golf.