Money in the Banks: Forge Christian wins individual, team 3A boys golf titles

ALAMOSA – As shots were gained and lost by players at the top of the leaderboard, Forge Christian sophomore Joey Banks kept his boat steady with par after par.

That is until he made a tap-in birdie on his second playoff hole.

Banks outlast Colorado Academy’s Trevor Youssi and Resurrection Christian’s Levi McDowell to claim the Class 3A boys golf state championship.

He shot a 4-under-par 67 at Cattails in the second round Tuesday to finish with a 36-hole total of 137, the same total that Youssi and McDowell finished with. McDowell and Banks made par on No. 1, the first playoff hole. Youssi was eliminated with a bogey. Then on the par-5 third, both remaining players ripped driver a mile down the fairway.

McDowell’s approach shot went long of the green, hit some lumber, but dropped in a spot that gave him an opportunity to get up and down for birdie. Banks hit the green and gave himself about 20 feet for eagle, a putt he thought he had to make.

“Levi is a great putter,” Banks said. “I knew there was a good chance he’d make it, so I was trying to make it.”

He just missed on the high side and tapped in for birdie. McDowell’s birdie putt missed to the right, ending his hopes for a title bid.

The final three holes and the two playoff holes provided an emotional wave for Banks. McDowell dropped back to 5-under with a bogey on the par-5 16th, the toughest hole of the tournament by stroke over par average. He made another bogey on 17, but responded with a birdie on 18.

Banks made a birdie on 10 to get to 5-under and then rattled off eight straight pars to complete his round.

“On hole 18, Joey chose team over self,” Forge Christian coach David Strange said. “He could’ve gone for that pin, gone pin-hunting, but he hit a safe conservative shot and two-putted. That’s all we needed for the team victory.”

When he tapped in for par on 18, his teammates rushed him. They had just captured the first team championship in school history.

“We had a little devotional out of second Corinthians [Monday night],” Strange said. “It talks about all the parts of the body can’t be successful without each other. So all the parts of the body function together and work together.”

They certainly worked together. Joey’s brother Ryan finished 4-over for the tournament to finish eighth. Dixon Gill rounded out the team score going 18-over and finishing 29th. Isaiah Gonzales shot 29-over and finished in 60th place.

Basalt finished as the team runner-up.

Joey Banks’ celebration was short-lived as he was trying to also get the first individual boys golf title in school history.

Whatever emotions or nerves may have been present were clearly eased by the time he hit a bullet down the No. 1 fairway with his 4-iron on the first playoff hole.

Like he had all day, he remained steady.

It was on the par-5 that he struck at his opportunity. He had already chosen team over self and got rewarded. He was then able to choose himself on No. 3 and was rewarded once again. He gets to celebrate self and celebrate team in one shot.

“I was excited,” Banks said. “We’re certainly all going to celebrate this later.”

As they should. Claiming two golf titles in one day for Forge Christian was as easy as putting money in the Banks.