BILLINGS — Billings Senior’s Kenzie Walsh has been knocking on the door of a State AA golf title each of the past three years.
Walsh has three top-three finishes in her high school career, and she’s ready to bust that proverbial door down this weekend after winning the Eastern AA divisional tournament in Bozeman last weekend by two strokes.
“I want to win, but I'm just going out there and doing what I can and hopefully if I play better than everybody else it will work out," Walsh said. "I'm just going to take it one shot at a time and not worry about anything else but myself and hopefully it works out."
Walsh knew the state tournament this fall would be held in her hometown, but she didn’t put any extra work in up at Lake Hills Golf Course, opting instead to play primarily at the Yellowstone Country Club. Walsh said she played maybe three rounds at Lake Hills this summer.
“I would say I feel like every time I've played here I've played pretty well, so that gives me a lot of confidence that I can go into this and play well," Walsh said. "Then I obviously know how the course is laid out, so I probably have a little more inside information than most people."
If Walsh is to finish atop the pack, she’ll need to overcome Billings West’s Bella Johnson, the two-time defending state champion. While the two are "like best friends," according to Walsh, she wants a title of her own.
“I like it," Walsh said of their friendly rivalry. "It's pushed me over the years to try and work harder. It definitely stresses me out a little bit because we're neck and neck, but I think it's a nice competitive situation."
The first round of the State AA tournament tees off at Lake Hills on Friday at 10 a.m. with a shotgun start.
