By Luke Sonderman, Golfer Blogger

This year Palm Valley attempts to defend its championship status that they have held for the past three years!

Golf Season to Date:

The Palm Valley Golf Team won their first triple match against Desert Chapel and Mesa Grande. We also won our second match against Joshua Springs. In our third match, we won again against Desert Chapel, but lost to Redlands. At yesterday’s match, we were down a player because Sophie is traveling back to her home in China, but we still won against Joshua Springs once again. 

The Palm Valley Varsity Golf Team, led by Coach Harvey, has six golfers: Jesse Denyer (co-captain), Sophie Zhong (co-captain), Jerry Wang, Jane White, Hambik Mandanyan, and myself (Luke Sonderman). 

Co-Captain Jesse Denyer is a strong leader for the team. Aside from her shared love for Mission Hills’ boujee water with Jane White, Jesse always hits bombs with her irons during practice and sets an amazing example for the rest of the team. 

Sophie Zhong is also one of the 2022 co-captains of the Palm Valley Golf Team for a good reason. Sophie never fails to hit the target when it comes to her shots. Sophie puts the ball where she wants it and leaves everything she has on the course.

Jerry Wang is one of the stars on the Palm Valley team as he pulls power behind his driver. Jerry never golfs without style as he is always wearing flashy Ray-Bans or designer sunglasses. If you ever go out to one of Palm Valley’s golf games and see a Robert Downey Jr. look alike, don’t be alarmed. It is just Jerry. 

Jane may be a pro fencer, but she is also one of the key members of the Palm Valley Golf Team. Although she sometimes forgets she is playing golf and ends up fencing Hambik with golf clubs, Jane always comes in clutch and hits the ball right where she needs to. 

Hambik Mandanyan is a Palm Valley Golf veteran and moral booster on the team. Hambik never fails to make everyone on the golf team have a good laugh on and off the course. Sometimes if you’re lucky, you may see Hambik doing a cartwheel after making par!

Although I may not look or play like a golfer, at all, I would consider myself a fair golfer. At Palm Valley golf practices, you may find me hitting rockets and duds with my clubs, or sitting on the driving range grass eating Panda Express with Co-Captain Jesse Denyer. 

Although many of last year’s team members graduated, Palm Valley’s Varsity Golf Team is still in it to win it and defend their championship for the fourth year in a row!