Dozens of high school golfers from the northwest Georgia area traveled south Monday, attempting to extend their seasons.
Trion senior John Rollins left no doubt that he's one of the best players in the state -- regardless of classification. He won the Bulldogs' Class A sectional Monday with a 3-under-par 68.
Dade County senior Chase Cole added a target to his back as well, considering he won a Class AA medalist title with a 75 on a windy Blueberry Plantation Course in Alma, Ga.
"That's some pretty good golf from our little northwestern corner of Georgia," Trion coach Doug Wilson said. "I'm like anybody else who's won something. It takes a while to set in. Maybe tomorrow it will set in."
Wilson's boys' team advanced to the state championship by shooting a 330, and his girls' team did likewise with a two-player 184.
"Most coaches don't have a chance to take two teams to state championship matches, let alone two in one year," he said.
The Dalton boys' team advanced in Class AAAA, and the Heritage guys advanced as well.
"A long trip home is always shorter after a win," Dalton coach Hunter Johnson said. "I was very pleased with what they did on the course today. Our guys had to be very disciplined and have good course management.
"Our guys came through."
There were also area teams Monday that just missed out.
Coahulla Creek placed 11th and lost by one stroke to Cartersville -- 357 to 358. The Dade County boys' team also missed by one.
"It feels like somebody put a knife in us and twisted it," Coahulla Creek coach Brian Dodson said. "We're out. Ten teams went to state and we were 11th."
Keith Robinette knows the pain. His North Murray County boys' team tied for eighth in Class AAA, which sent the Mountaineers into a playoff. It lasted three holes with Sonoraville surviving to advance.
Sonoraville's girls and nearby Gordon Central's also advanced.
Contact David Uchiyama at duchiyama@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6484. Follow him at twitter.com/UchiyamaCTFP.