The road of the 2016 season has been a difficult one for Buckingham County High School’s varsity golf team, but not one without some encouraging growth.

Following Wednesday’s match against Goochland High School and Cumberland High School, the Knights took their regular season record this year to 3-13, recording a win against the Dukes and a loss to the Bulldogs.

“It’s been a struggling season, that’s for sure,” Buckingham Head Golf Coach Tim Hoag said.

The Knights are consistently met with the challenge of playing teams that have more experienced players.

“All the other teams have one or two kids (where) golf is what they do,” Hoag said. “And for all of our kids, golf is just something to do. And there’s nothing wrong with that, but that’s just the way it is, because all my other kids, they play other sports — baseball and basketball — they’re into a lot of different sports.”

Hoag said that as a coach, he naturally wants his players to develop to their full potential, but he also understands that some are not interested in pursuing the sport beyond the high school schedule or level.

“What I try to do is teach them to have fun, teach them the etiquette of the game, the respect for other players and (to) learn as much as they can about golf,” Hoag said. “And it’s a lifetime sport, so hopefully they’ll play long after high school’s over.”

If they do, they will be following in Hoag’s footsteps. This is only his third year serving as a golf coach, but he estimated he has been playing golf since he was 10, making him a 47-year veteran of the sport.

He is leading a young Buckingham team this year that features only two seniors, plus a sophomore and three freshmen.

The Knights’ clear No. 1 player is senior Gray Heslip. Entering Wednesday’s match, he had a 46.4 scoring average (per nine holes) this season.

“He’s shot in the 40s six out of seven matches that we’ve played, and I think we’ve only had one other round in the 40s of all the guys on the team in seven matches,” Hoag said.

In highlighting the strength of Heslip’s game, Hoag pointed to the senior’s experience.

“He’s been playing the longest,” the coach said. Additionally, “he’s a good athlete, and he gets off the tee pretty well.”

After Heslip, three Buckingham golfers are similar in terms of the scores they produce. Sophomore Peyton Taylor averages a 54, senior C.J. Ragland averages a 55 and freshman Trevor Kelly averages a 56.

“Peyton Taylor, a sophomore, has been a pleasant surprise,” Hoag said on Tuesday. “He’s actually gone from starting up around 60 down to 46 and 51 his last two matches. So, it’s nice to see him develop.”

The coach said the strength of Taylor’s game is probably his

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middle game, while Kelly hits long and well off the tee and Ragland likely represents himself best as a putter.

With hard work, Taylor and Kelly could be quite competitive as upperclassmen, Hoag said.

The coach is also in the process of developing freshmen Mason Ballowe and Darian Lipscomb, who round out the 2016 roster for Buckingham.

Taking a realistic approach as he evaluates his team’s postseason prospects, Hoag said the Knights have no chance of winning at the conference tournament, where they will face Appomattox County High School, a team that sets a high standard for others to reach for. The Raiders typically shoot in the 150s as a team.

“We’re about 50, 60 strokes behind them,” he said.

After Thursday’s tri-match featuring the Knights, Goochland and Randolph-Henry High School, the Knights will participate in seeded matches among district schools at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 15, at a location to be announced.