Golfer captures first leg

Jaxon Arguello of the Tucumcari boys golf team recently captured the first of three legs needed to individually qualify for the state tournament.

Arguello, a senior, shot a 78 on the par-72 Links course April 8 during the two-day Leroy Gooch Tournament in Ruidoso. The qualifying score was 80. It was the Rattlers’ first leg – team or individual – this season.

Other individual Tucumcari scores on that day were Isaac Arias 85, Malachi Anaya 88, Jeremiah Cordova 93 and Andrew Sandoval 112.

The top score of the day was Jeremiah Avery of Socorro, who shot a 75.

Rattlers coach Marty Garcia, in his 10th year, said Arguello and his teammates didn’t do nearly as well April 9 in the tournament’s challenging Alto par-72 course that featured steep hills, narrow fairways and “lots of sand.” Qualifying score on that course was 84.

Arias shot a 97 on day two, and no one else from Tucumcari broke 100.

The top playerr on the second day was Jake Butkiewicz of Ruidoso, who shot a 75.

Team-wise, Tucumcari finished eighth overall with a cumulative score of 770. Deming won the tournament with a 667 score.

Garcia said he was optimistic several Rattlers also could capture a few legs and even more.

“I think this team has the opportunity to qualify for state for the first time in years,” he said. The last time was so long ago, Garcia said he couldn’t remember it.

The Tucumcari boys team plays 11 people per tournament.

The Lady Rattlers team has just two players — Lenora Trujillo and Aaliyah Brown — so they won’t be able to qualify for state as a team because it needs four.

However, Garcia said the two girls are “improving tremendously,” and he’s optimistic one or both could qualify for a leg or two, or even state.