By Staff
Clif Knight, Hartselle Enquirer
A triple bogey on hole No. 3 in the second round of the1A-2A state golf tournament didn't faze Falkville's Kyle Pressley. He simply picked up the slack over the next six holes, went into the back nine at even par and finished his game with an even-par 72. His performance, combined with an opening round score of 75, was good enough for him to lay claim to a second state championship golf title.
His title run was made at the Magnolia Grove Crossing Golf Course in Mobile on May 15 and 16. He beat out Jake Killian of Altamont who finished second with a two-round score of 155. The Falkville team of Pressley, Thomas Holt, Josh Henderson and Dustin Gatlin finished fourth overall.
"I wasn't surprised that he played that well," said Falkville head coach Gerald Holmes. "He has shot at or near par all season and he plays well under pressure. He's also skilled with the short irons, chipping and putting. He made two chip shots from off the green in the opening round and another one in the second round."
"I couldn't be more pleased with the way my senior season ended," Pressley said. "When I won the state title as a sophomore, it was unexpected. I had hoped to finish in the top 10. This time I felt confident I could win if I played my game. I can usually come up with several birdies in a normal round. I know I can blow a hole and still come back."
Pressley put his game to a successful test in April when he and his teammates traveled to Myrtle Beach, S.C., to participate in an invitational tournament featuring 140 high school golf teams from across the nation. He was a medalist winner in flight competition with a two round combined score of 146 and finished third overall among some 600 golfers. He also is credited with a record 13-under-par 59 performance over 18 holes at the Quail Creek Golf Course.
Pressley has signed a golf scholarship with Northwest Shoals Community College and hopes to play professional golf in the future.
"I plan to work hard to improve my game at Northwest," Pressley said. "If I do well I'll probably go to Q-school and try to qualify to play on the Nationwide Golf Tour. I'd also consider an offer to play for Florida State University for a couple of years and major in professional golf management."
Pressley's golf regimen consists of 36 holes a day, seven days a week, weather permitting. He also averages spending another couple of hours a day working with drivers, short irons and putters.
Pressley is the son of Pete and Mary Pressley and the brother of Todd Pressley, a former Falkville High golfer. His father and brother both are avid golfers. On the same day Kyle was wrapping up his state championship run Pete was having a red-letter day of golf at the Robert Trent Jones Course in Prattville. He came up with an albatross – a hole-in-one on a 400-yard par-four hole.