Bonduel boys looking for golfers to step up

The Bonduel High School boys golf team heads into the spring season with plenty of questions to answer.

The last time the Bears competed in 2019, the group placed fourth in the Central Wisconsin Conference. When Bonduel competed at regionals that year, the team included two juniors and two seniors, who have all now graduated.

The lone member of the five-golfer team back this spring is junior Cooper Uelmen.

For that reason, coach Dave LaBerge knows there might be a bit of a learning curve at first.

LaBerge added that he sees plenty of potential in the freshmen and sophomores who will be making their high school golf debuts.

“With all the time off, it will take some extra effort to just get everyone back in the groove of practice and proper golf etiquette,” said LaBerge. “We are extremely young, so I’m not quite sure what to expect yet, but great to see the good numbers signing up.”

Even with the limited experience alongside him, Uelmen is excited to get back on the links.

“It’s gonna be tough. I’ve worked with a lot of the new guys last year and helped them grow,” said Uelmen. “I’ll be honest with you: I guarantee nobody sees Bonduel boys golf as a threat this year. We have one returning golfer in the entire program.

“I believe that these guys behind a good team captain and a great coach such as LaBerge, I think we can make a deep drive into playoffs and make a good shot for ourselves as conference champs for the first time in almost 10 years. It all just depends on how hard our guys want it.”

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