The Star’s All-Metro boys golf team: SM East’s Andy Spencer is player of the year

If you ask Shawnee Mission East’s Andy Spencer how he feels about his senior golf season, the word “disappointed” would actually be used. Second place at the Kansas 6A state tournament will do that to a person.

But Spencer, the 6A state runner-up, finished the year with a 73.78 scoring average, the winner of four other tournaments, and is The Star’s All-Metro boys golfer of the year.

“I was a little disappointed in my finish at state. Being second is tough,” he said. “There were some putts on the back nine I could have made, but I just got beat.”

It wasn’t often Spencer did get beat this year: He finished in the top two of seven of the nine tournaments he played in. He won the Shawnee Mission Northwest, Shawnee Mission East and Lawrence Free State Invitationals, all with scores of 72 or lower.

In his final tournament for SM East, Spencer shot 70 at Manhattan Country Club and led the Lancers to a team state title.

The key to Spencer’s success in 2016, he says, was the ability to create consistency within an inconsistent game.

“I think it’s just having the mental strength and being able to get past those bad shots, because this is golf, and the bad days are going to happen,” he said. “It’s just a process of doing it so often that it’s second nature to you, so you don’t feel pressure when you’re out there.”

▪ Blake Allen, Shawnee Mission Northwest, senior. Allen finished ninth in the Kansas 6A state tournament, but had the lowest season average in the state (72) and was the 6A player of the year.

▪ Thomas Luger, Shawnee Mission East, sophomore. Luger played his best golf in the final three weeks of the season, finishing second in the final leg of the Sunflower League, first at his regional and fourth at the Kansas 6A state tournament.

▪ Griffin Mott, Blue Valley, senior. In regional play, Mott surged ahead of the second-place finisher by 10 strokes. He rode that momentum to a third-place finish at the Kansas 6A state tournament (71) and accumulated a 73.8 scoring average for the year.

▪ Tanner Owen, Park Hill South, senior. The Nebraska signee finished in the top-three in all but one tournament he played this season. He won his Missouri Class 4 sectional tournament with a 2-under par and compiled a 36.8 nine-hole scoring average.

▪ Sam Parrott, Liberty, junior. He was the top local finisher at the Missouri Class 4 state tournament, placing second. He won his district tournament and fired a 66 to win the Winnetonka Tournament. In the regular season, he had a nine-hole scoring average of 1-over par.

▪ Andy Spencer, Shawnee Mission East, senior. Spencer finished in the top two of seven of his tournaments this year, on his way to a 73.78 scoring average. He shot a 70 at Manhattan Country Club in May to secure a second-place finish in the Kansas 6A state tournament.

This story was originally published June 30, 2016 at 6:50 PM with the headline "The Star’s All-Metro boys golf team: SM East’s Andy Spencer is player of the year."