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IZZY GOULDThe wait is scheduled to end next week for the tournament, twice delayed by weather, including Wilma.
WESLEY CHAPEL - Two weeks of state golf postponements.
Try eating cookies with a sore throat and you'll find the feeling is similar.
What's harder for a high schooler to swallow than news that the most important tournament of his life has been bumped back, twice?
Golfers lost some steam and anticipation was turned to a simmer as organizers adjusted after Hurricane Wilma flipped South Florida into disarray.
Most of Florida and its forecasters are ready for the hurricane "offseason."
As for golf, the Florida High School Athletic Association announced late Tuesday that the state finals were "a definite go for next week."
That was pleasant news for the hundreds of golfers, coaches and parents snapping pencils and inking in plans for the two-day tournament on four courses on the Treasure Coast.
Staying abreast of moves and delays has been frustrating for Saddlebrook Prep and Mitchell junior Emily Van Etten. Van Etten and Saddlebrook's boys and girls teams qualified for state play.
Saddlebrook coach Neil Postlethwait spent the past two weeks scanning his computer for the latest word on the state finals. He called FHSAA golf administrator Cecelia Jackson last week, who said he was searching in the right place, the FHSAA's official Web site.
"I was trying to call the Saints golf course and I was getting no answer," Postlethwait said. "I called her to see if I could get an update. She said to check the Web site. We had to look under swimming and diving and had it all listed under there."
Golfers forged on with practice hoping a new week would unveil new hope. They focused fine-tuning drives and putts not knowing when, or if, this prolonged attention to detail would pay off.
Saddlebrook benefits from its role as a golf academy, allowing students plenty of time to roam its two courses, then work with specialized instructors.
Van Etten has spent these weeks - without a team - preparing at Heritage Springs, where her father, Roger, is a golf pro.
Though the wait has been a drag, Van Etten puts a positive spin it. Her father would have been buried with work this week. Instead, he is free to travel to watch both rounds.
"It's been frustrating to have it keep being rescheduled," Van Etten said. "But it gives you more practice time."
Contact Izzy Gould at 727 580-5315 or igould@sptimes.com