Lawrence High’s new golf coach, Dirk Wedd, has made the transition from the unforgiving surface of Haskell Stadium to the lush greens of Alvamar Golf Course.

And Wedd, the Lions’ head football coach for nine years, has enjoyed his foray into golf.

“I’ve had a ball,” he said. “It gives me an opportunity to work with a little bit different type of kid.”

Wedd takes over a team with only two returning lettermen, junior Cameron Hartford and senior Mark Mercer. Hartford is one of the Lions’ longest hitters, while Wedd lauded Mercer’s short game.

“They’ve got some experience from last year,” Wedd said. “That helps a great deal, just having played in varsity tournaments.”

The rest of the roster includes two notable athletes from basketball season – seniors Chance Riley and Nick Wagner.

High school golfers, from left, Free State's Nick Burkart, Lawrence High's Cameron Hartford, Seabury's Bill Gibbs and Veritas' Michael Penny, are key cogs of their teams heading into the spring season.

Wedd also coached Riley, the team’s starting quarterback, during football season.

“He hasn’t played a lot of golf,” Wedd said. “But he’s a talented athlete.”

Wade Billings, Jon Cohen, Kyle Consolver, Bobby Davis, Paul Eltschinger, Mitch Gill, Nicholas Hanna, Spencer Hutchens, Jeffrey Miller, Oliver Shawano, Dylan Shmalberg and Alex Thompson also hope for big years.

“We’re going to have some growing pains early on,” Wedd said. “I anticipate us being pretty good by the end of the season.”

North of 15th street at Free State High, the golf team will feature five seniors as part of its 15-man team.

“I’ve got some really good leaders,” Free State coach Matt Gudenkauf said. “The older kids are great role models for the underclassemen.”

With such experience guiding the team, the Firebirds hope to qualify for the state tournament as a team after missing out by one stroke last year.

Two of the individual qualifiers for state – seniors Nick Burkart and Daniel Selk – return this year.

Selk reached state in 2006 despite not registering a birdie at any tournament.

“He’s a par guy,” Gudenkauf said. “I can always count on his score as being one that we’ll be able to use as a team.”

Free State’s squad also will receive leadership from three other seniors – Allen Burkart (Nick’s cousin), Blaine Juhl and Austin Wright.

The rest of the roster includes Ben Kramer, Jake Woodard, Nick Vetter, Sean Ragan, Dale Shillington, Jake Miller, Seth McCauley, Connor Klutman, Evan Schmidt and Joey Sakamura.

Seabury Academy will rely on a much younger squad, featuring three freshman. But Seabury coach and athletic director Brian Clyne likes their potential.

“I’ve got guys who have played the game on their own for a number of years,” he said. “That’s a pretty good foundation.”

The Seahawks have four golfers, the minimum necessary to reach 1A state as a team. The top two teams in each regional advance, and Seabury finished fourth last year.

Zach Schmidt, a junior and the lone returning player, will serve as the elder statesman on the 2007 team. The team’s best player, however, could be freshman Bill Gibbs, who practiced with the team on occasion last year.

Ryan Gutierrez and Dan Simons round out the rest of the squad. Clyne said Simons excels with his all-around game while Gutierrez thrives on his long-distance game.

This year Seabury will host two duels for the first time. The landmark events will occur at Alvamar Golf Course on April 17 against Kansas City (Mo.) Barstow and May 7 against Kansas City (Mo.) Lutheran High School.

“We’re looking forward to playing on a home course this year,” Clyne said.

Like Seabury, Veritas Christian will field a young squad. The Eagles have 13 golfers but no seniors on their coed squad. That tender-aged team will have big shoes to fill.

A Kansas Christian Athletic Association team, Veritas placed second at state last year – the highest finish in school history.

“We’d be very pleased this year to equal that,” Veritas coach Greg Capps said.

While attempting to repeat last year’s success, the Eagles must replace departed seniors Andrew Bartlow and Mark Randtke.

The 2007 team will lean on juniors Stephen May and Michael Penny. The team leaders have inversely proportionate skills. May has a strong game off the tees while Penny shines with his precise short game.

The rest of the coed team includes John Bradshaw, Katie Brown, Gabby Burman, Lauren Crider, Isaiah Dover, Jeremiah Johnson, Stephanie Nystrom, Hogan Randall, Tyler Williams, Susan Wilson and Taylor Zook.