How good can Palm Desert High School golf be this year? Loaded Aztecs look to postseason
The expectations for the Palm Desert High School boys' golf team may not have changed since last year, but perhaps the way the team is approaching the season has.
A year after falling one round short of the CIF-SCGA tournament, in essence the Southern California championship event, the Aztecs return everyone from last year’s team and have added a top player to a squad that could be a state championship contender.
Palm Desert head coach Curt Brietfuss believes the Aztecs are handling such expectations without much talk.
“It’s kind of changed year by year, my approach to it,” Brietfuss said. “This year, these guys are all maturing. It’s definitely very mature this year, and the focus. There is really nothing that needs to be said. They understand this. They are all committed. I’m just seeing a different level of concentration this year.”
Palm Desert split the regular season Desert Empire League title with Xavier Prep last year, but while Palm Desert returns everyone from a strong team in 2023, Xavier Prep is looking at some new faces.
“I wouldn’t say it is a rebuilding year, but it’s definitely an opportunity for the young kids to set up and see what they’ve got,” said Xavier Prep coach Dave Menke after losing four seniors from the 2023 team.
For Brietfuss, the problem might be finding playing time for all of his talented golfers. Returning from last year are juniors Caden and Landon Breisch along with junior Max Margolis and sophomore Luke Ringkamp, who Brietfuss calls the team’s top player. Added to the team is junior Austin Woods, who has struggled with injuries in recent years but has established himself as one of the team’s top five players already.
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Rounding out the six-man team from Palm Desert will be any one of a trio of players, including seniors Mason Montgomery and Ivan Tran and sophomore Cash Tompoles. They will fight for playing time in a system that sees Brietfuss count every stroke in tournaments and in practice.
“I’ve been real consistent on how I run things, there is no second guessing. Everyone knows what they have to do to qualify and play in these events,” Brietfuss said. “I do all of my work ahead of times, just setting up the schedule. Then it is just a matter of making it so it is just very competitive in terms of getting in the team.”
Getting ready for postseason
Palm Desert’s tough schedule will including two events that include Northern California power De La Salle as well as a home-and-home of 18-hole matches against Torrey Pines of San Diego.
Palm Desert has also added an assistant coach, former Aztecs player and Southern Utah University golfer Casey Scott. Brietfuss said he felt part of last year’s season-ending tournament finish at the CIF-SCGA team qualifiers in Oxnard was because his team didn’t have as much information about their placement after a bad start to the day. Scott and Brietfuss will be more strategic in where they are on the course and getting information to players, Brietfuss said.
“We were kind of blindsided,” Brietfuss said of missing one of the top four spots in the SCGA qualifier. “I take blame for that. We didn’t play all that bad. We played great the last 16 holes.”
As in past years, Palm Desert is already placed into Division 1 of the CIF-Southern Section regionals, a division that awards 10 spots in the CIF-SCGA event, while other divisions aren’t guaranteed any spots. Joining Palm Desert in Division 1 this year is Xavier Prep, based on a formula of judging a team over the last two years.
“By winning conference last year, that helped move us into Division 1. In my seven years of coaching, we haven’t been in Division 1,” Menke said. “Four, 3, 2, 3, bouncing back and forth between 2 and 3 mostly. To be able to go into Division I and have a 50 percent chance of moving on from there, that’s a huge difference between being in Division 2 or 3.”
Benton Sullivan and Trent Hamilton, both juniors, will lead Xavier Prep this year, with several freshmen contending for playing time.
Palm Desert and Xavier Prep opened the DEL season against each other, with Palm Desert scoring a 176-210 win at the Firecliff Course at Desert Willow Golf Resort in Palm Desert. Palm Desert was led by a strong 4-under 32 by Caden Breisch, 35s by Margolis and Landon Breisch, a 36 by Ringkamp, a 37 by Montgomery and a 38 by Woods. Sullivan led Xavier Prep with a 37.
In a follow-up DEL match against postseason contender La Quinta, Palm Desert won 175-209, led by a 5-under 31 by Margolis, a 34 by Ringkamp and a 35 by Landon Breisch.
La Quinta, under new head coach Mark Williams, has already posted a strong 189 score in a non-league win over Vista Murrieta. Senior and team captain Sinjin Armstrong shot a 4-under 32, while freshman Hunter Hansen in his first high school match posted a 35.
But La Quinta’s path to a deep run in the postseason is hurt by being assigned to Division 5 based on its last two seasons. Palm Springs is also in Division 5, as are Rancho Mirage and two Desert Valley teams in defending league champion Yucca Valley and Shadow Hills. Coachella Valley of the DVL is in Division 6 along with Twentynine Palms, while two other DVL teams, Indio and Desert Mirage, are in Division 7.
Brietfuss said while his Palm Desert team might be favored to win the DEL, nothing can be taken for granted.
“In nine-hole matches, anything can happen,” he said. “You start to separate out after 18, five out of six (players). But five out of six in a nine-hole match, you could have one hole that just messes everything up.”
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Palm Desert golf already shooting crazy low scores in season with lofty goals
