Meet the Leaf-Chronicle's All-Area high school boys and girls golf teams for 2023
Parker Elkins ended his first round at the Class AA state golf tournament by birdieing the 18th hole. It was then that he allowed himself to think about what could come next.
When the Clarksville senior got to the clubhouse, he realized he was in second place, just one stroke off the lead. Elkins knew he had a real chance to become the first Wildcat to win a TSSAA championship since Drew Miller in 2007.
"I was just thinking, 'Keep the same strategy,' " Elkins said. "If birdies came, they came. If not, 'oh, well.'"
Elkins rarely had to worry about the latter part. His second round at the River Course at Sevierville Golf Club was a lot like his first — in his words, "everything" was going well. He hit fairways; he hit greens; he hit putts. He bogeyed just two of 36 holes over two days en route to a final score of 7-under-par 137. When the dust had settled, that put Elkins two strokes ahead of East Hamilton's Tucker Wick.
"It feels better and better by the moment," Elkins said.
Not only is Elkins the sixth individual state champion in Clarksville history, he's the Leaf-Chronicle's All-Area boys golfer of the year for 2023. The Austin Peay signee is the second straight Wildcat to win the honor, following in the footsteps of 2022 winner Cooper Jones.
Clarksville junior Zoe Phillips is the girls all-area golfer for 2023, making this the sixth consecutive season the award has gone to a Wildcat. Phillips was golfer of the year in 2022 as well, but this season was a bit different from her first.
Last season, Phillips had to assume a leadership role after spending her freshman season as Clarksville's No. 3 golfer. This fall, sophomores Hadley Hagewood and Mackensey Hightower took some responsibility off Phillips' shoulders.
"All of the underclassmen really stepped up," Phillips said. "It was a lot more of a team effort this year."
It was a needed one, as Phillips struggled with her putting during the middle part of the season. But she fought through in time to tie for 17th at the state tournament at the Sevierville Golf Club Highlands Course.
"You just get these mental things in your head, and it's hard to get out," Phillips said. "But by the end of the season, I did."
Clarksville's girls, who finished fifth as a team at state, are an established presence there. The Wildcats won a state title in 2021 and made it there in 2022 as well. This season, they were joined by the boys team, which qualified for the first time since its 2007 championship. Clarksville's boys placed second, five strokes behind Brentwood.
"We did stuff every night," Phillips said. "In the past, we just went to our hotel rooms, golfed and went back in. But we got to go out to dinner, we got to do things with the team. It was really fun to have everyone together."
The Leaf-Chronicle's 2023 All-Area boys and girls golf teams are as follows:
Boys First Team
Parker Elkins
Clarksville, Sr.
Why chosen: Elkins won the Class AA championship, shooting a first-round 68 followed by a second-round 69. He won the District 13-AA individual championship with a 68 and placed fourth at the Region 7-AA tournament (74). He shot under par in six of 11 rounds on the season, with a high score of +3. Elkins is a two-time Leaf-Chronicle All-Area honoree.
Hayden Howell
Stewart County, So.
Why chosen: Howell finished fourth at the Class A tournament with a 1-over-par 145 (71-74) to lead the Rebels to second place. He placed third at the District 10-A tournament (78) and fourth at the Region 5-A tournament (78). Howell had a nine-hole average of 37.63.
Cooper Jones
Clarksville, Jr.
Why chosen: Jones tied for fourth at the state tournament, shooting 3-under-par (71-70-141). He also tied for second at the Region 7-AA tournament (71) and shot +1 or lower in six of 12 rounds for the season. Jones has made the all-area team three years in a row.
Ayden Smith
Stewart County, Jr.
Why chosen: Smith placed 10th at state (77-76-153), third in the region (76) and second in the district (75). He averaged 37.42 for nine holes. This is Smith's second straight season on the all-area team.
Landon Wallace
Stewart County, Jr.
Why chosen: Wallace placed 12th at state (78-77-155), second in the region (75) and fourth in the district (81). He had a nine-hole average of 37.39. Wallace is a two-time all-area golfer.
Boys Second Team
JJ Giarrizzo, Clarksville Academy, Sr.
Briley Hagewood, Clarksville, Sr.
Braeden Parker, Clarksville, So.
Girls First Team
Zoe Phillips
Clarksville, Jr.
Why chosen: Phillips shot 20-over-par (82-78-160) at the Class AA tournament. She was the Region 7-AA runner-up (77) and won the District 13-AA title, and had an 18-hole scoring average of 79. This is her third straight season on the all-area team.
Hadley Hagewood
Clarksville, So.
Why chosen: Hagewood tied for 21st at the state tournament (84-79-163) and shot an 81 at the region tournament.
Makensey Hightower
Clarksville, So.
Why chosen: Hightower tied for 25th at the state tournament (77-89-166) and shot an 88 at the region tournament.
Shelby Smith
Stewart County, So.
Why chosen: Smith placed 19th at the Class A tournament (83-88-171) and second in District 10-A and Region 5-A, shooting an 82 at both tournaments.
Natalee Wyatt
Stewart County, Fr.
Why chosen: Wyatt finished 16th at state with a score of 29-over 169 (80-89) and led the Rebels to a fifth-place team finish. She won the district championship, firing an 81, and tied for third in the region (83).
Girls Second Team
Morghan Lewis, Clarksville Academy, So.
Alys L'Herault, Rossview, Jr.
Emily McCowan, Clarksville Academy, Sr.
This article originally appeared on Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle: Clarksville all-area boys and girls golf teams for 2023 TSSAA season
