Patriotic Raiders capture first leg of Quincy’s Ryder Cup by winning four points at QCC

QUINCY — The American flag pants the Quincy Notre Dame boys golf team wears each year during the Quincy Ryder Cup might not be the most comfortable, but Raiders junior Aiden Tangy would gladly trade a little bit of discomfort to look stylish.

“They’re very hot, but they’re really cool,” Tangy said. “I think they look good.”

Raiders sophomore Grant Lepper feels similarly about the pants.

“It’s pretty much just for the fun of it, to make it more look like we’re actually playing in the Ryder Cup,” Lepper said. “They’re a little warm, but they look cool.”

They didn’t mind trading a little sweat for a victory either. Tangy and Lepper won both of their two-person best ball nine-hole matches against Tyler O’Brien and Andrew Ali to help the Raiders earn a 4-2 victory in the first leg of the Ryder Cup played Monday at Quincy Country Club.

The top six players on each team formed three two-person best ball teams and played two nine-hole matches. Each team earned a point for winning a nine-hole match.

The teams will play the second leg of the Ryder Cup on Wednesday at Spring Lake Country Club.

In the final match of the day to finish, Tangy and Lepper were one down to O’Brien and Ali entering the 14th hole, but the Raiders won the next three holes to go two up entering the par-3 17th hole. Tangy’s tee shot missed right of the green, but Lepper hit his about 15 feet left of the pin, slightly inside Ali’s tee shot. After O’Brien and Ali both missed their putts, all Lepper and Tangy had to do was two-putt for the match and the team victory.

Lepper’s putt went 2 feet past the hole, but Tangy got his putt to within gimmie range to secure the victory.

“After I saw Grant’s putt, I went for it and I missed, but it was within a couple inches,” Tangy said.

Tangy also made a 6-foot par putt on No. 16 to win the hole and put the Raiders 2-up.

“I’m just the putter I guess,” Tangy said.

Sophomore Ty Novosel and junior Hunter St. Clair picked up the Blue Devlis’ two points by defeating QND’s Beau Eftink and Dylan Kies in two nine-hole matches that came down to the final hole. Novosel and St. Clair were 1-up entering the ninth hole, and the two groups halved the hole to give the Blue Devils their first point.

The back nine match was tied entering the 17th hole, then St. Clair’s tee shot gave him and Novosel the window of opportunity they needed. St. Clair’s 6-iron flew almost directly over the top of the flag stick and stopped dead 10 feet from the hole.

“I liked it in the air,” St. Clair said. “It was the swing I’d been looking for all day.”

Novosel knew it was money off the club face, too.

“I went up to him while it was in the air and I was like ‘be so good,’” Novosel said “I knew it was going to be perfect as soon as he hit it.”

After Eftink and Kies’ chip shots rolled long, St. Clair narrowly missed his own birdie putt, leaving it up to Novosel to give him and St. Clair a lead heading to No. 18. Novosel rolled his putt right into the center of the hole and got a high five from St. Clair as they headed to the 18th tee.

“Ty clutched up,” St. Clair said.

Novosel came up clutch once again on the short par-4 18th. St. Clair’s drive clipped a tree and landed in the fairway about 80 yards from the green, then Novosel piped his drive to about 10 feet short of the middle of the green.

“That was a really good drive,” Novosel said. “We couldn’t even see it in the sun so that was kind of disappointing, but I hit it really well and the chip shot was even better.”

That chip shot, which Novosel came within two inches of making for an eagle, clinched the match for him and St. Clair.

“That’s like my favorite shot in all of golf,” Novosel said. “I knew as soon as I got up to it I was going to hit it close.”

That confidence was also evident on the par-5 16th after St. Clair’s tee shot went out of bounds. Novosel stepped up and hit his tee shot to a near perfect position in the fairway, leading to a birdie.

“Walking off that tee box, Hunter’s like ‘Ty doesn’t feel pressure,’” Novosel said. “I felt pretty confident. I’d been hitting the driver well all day, and it was basically the same tee shot I hit on 18.”

Like Tangy and Lepper, Novosel thoroughly enjoys the Ryder Cup.

“It’s so much fun. It’s so much different than every other high school tournament we play,” Novosel said. “Even though we’re rivals, we’re friends with a lot of guys on the QND team, so it’s fun to go head-to-head against them.”

St. Clair gave the tournament even higher praise.

“It’s my favorite tournament of the year,” St. Clair said. “It’s such a different format. We don’t get to do something like this very often.”