South Hills High School golf sure does have some swanky digs. Marshall Canyon Golf Course, where Claremont plays its home matches, is pretty nice, and the mule deer that live there do give the place a sincere woodsy feel.

But the South Hills Country Club where the Huskies play is really spectacular. The fairways are as finely manicured as the greens on most courses with scarcely a divot to be found. There are signs posted everywhere reminding guests that the dress code is strictly enforced, but the staff was far from snooty and quite helpful when a reporter inquired about the location of the high school players. In addition, the club offers the course for free to the high school players just to support young golfers.

The Pack was fortunate to be guests at South Hills on Tuesday for the penultimate match of their 2016 season. Coach Terrance Lynch did have to remind a couple of his players about the dress code and that they were required to carry their bags.

Nonetheless, it was a good outing for the boys, who narrowly defeated South Hills 237-240, advancing their league record to 3-8. The low score for the day was sophomore Wyatt Iles, who shot a 45 seven over par.

Besides the course’s beauty, it’s also quite difficult, sporting a nine-hole par of 37, with two more par five holes than Marshall.

After some reshuffling due to an absence, Claremont’s two top players, senior Tyler Yang and sophomore Andrew Hammill, ended up paired with South Hills number one James Johnson and number three Chris Ehrenberger. Also on the Pack’s varsity roster are Iles, junior Matt Lach, senior Elijah Song and senior Josh Wang.

Claremont is in a very competitive league, according to Coach Lynch, with Diamond Bar a perennial state champion. This season the Pack has struggled some, but Coach Lynch has optimism about his up-and-coming players.

“We have been competitive, but our win and loss does not show that,” he said. “Our kids don’t stop playing hard, I am excited about what we have done.

“I’m bummed to see the three seniors go, but we have a pretty experienced team coming back,” he said, adding, “I have four freshman who have shown real good promise on junior varsity.”

Claremont will not be advancing to CIF team competition this year, but could still have individual players go to CIF, with the league prelims beginning next week.

Each team puts up six varsity golfers for the two-day, 36-hole tournament. The first day is Tuesday at Western Hills Country Club in Chino Hills. The golfers who make it all the way to the finals will play at Los Seranos Country Club.

It looks like Diamond Bar will be in a different league in a couple of years, but Claremont’s Coach Lynch did not have any details other than they will no longer have to play them, which could improve the Pack’s chances in the future.

“They [Diamond Bar] are just a really good team. They will be competitive wherever they play,” Coach Lynch said.

—Steven Felschundneff

steven@claremont-courier.com