It wasn't unusual to see Easton Chaffee with a bucket of golf balls after practice, taking them back out onto the course.
The Blair High School senior put in the time to become a two-time state qualifier.
“He had a fantastic career,” Bears coach Ross Udey said. “This year especially.”
“The three years at Blair have been amazing,” Chaffee added. “Great memories.”
The golfer's final prep campaign concluded May 24 during the second day of the NSAA Class B Boys State Golf Championships in Gering. After earning a tie for 16th through 18 holes May 23, the BHS standout finished tied for 29th with 162 strokes through 36 a day later at Monument Shadows Golf Course. He took 76 swings during the first round, but 86 during the next.
“It just wasn't there,” Udey said.
Chaffee, a two-time state qualifier, finished 18 strokes behind first-place Treyton Baehr of Beatrice despite six tournament birdies. He shot par on 13 more holes, too, but just three times on the second day of the state tournament.
“I just wasn't as ready today as I was the first day,” Chaffee said.
Udey said his top golfer struggled to hit his ball down the fairway in Gering.
Even so, he shot 1-under par across the last four holes of his Blair Bears career. He birdied the par-4 15th hole first.
“He practically drove it to the green,” Udey said.
The senior then cut a stroke on No. 16, too.
“Made a nice putt,” Udey said.
It was just too little, too late, however, after Chaffee sunk three birdies and finished just 4-over par after the first day state competition.
Though he fell short of a state medal, Udey said the Bear's senior year was an unquestionable success. He won the Class B District 2 Tournament on May 15 with 72 swings, noting that it was the “top round of my life.”
The result was earned with a bucket of balls and extra practice in his coach's eyes.
“He put in the time,” Udey said.
Now, the Blair High School golf program will go without its graduated low-man.
“Great kid,” his coach said. “We'll miss him.”
Chaffee thanked Udey, too, congratulating him on his recent retirement from teaching.
CLASS B STATE GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPS
May 23-24 at Monument Shadows Golf Course, Gering
Top-5 teams: York 593 strokes, Norris 601, Scottsbluff 631, Elkhorn North 648, Columbus Lakeview 653.
Medalist: Treyton Baehr, Beatrice, 144 strokes (won second playoff hole).
Blair result: 29, Easton Chaffee, 162 strokes.
