Qualifying standard in golf would be appreciated
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The number of golfers from a beginner level to a professional one that would be upset about carding a score of 2-under par for an 18-hole round is miniscule.
But that score, recorded in Tuesday's District 6 Class 3A championship, was not good enough to give Hollidaysburg senior Tyler Steiner a chance to compete in the PIAA boys golf championship in State College on Oct. 19-20.
In the Class 3A boys field, Districts 6, 4 and 10 get only two qualifiers. Districts 8 and 9 combine to get only two, and District 5 gets none.
The rest of the field of 72 is made up from District 1 (17), District 2 (5), District 3 (19), District 7 (13), District 11 (6) and District 12 (4).
This season, District 6 has a particularly strong field of 3A boys golfers mostly due to State College, which had three players finish under par on Tuesday. The Little Lions finished 3-under par as a team and will be among the favorites to win a team state title on Oct. 21.
Luke McGraw and Charlie Ladrido each shot a 3-under par score of 69 on Tuesday, and McGraw won the playoff by making a birdie on his first hole.
McGraw and Ladrido claimed spots in the PIAA championship and rightfully so, but what about Steiner who was not only one stroke away from qualifying for states but one stroke from being in a playoff that would have given him the chance to beat both McGraw and Ladrido, which he had done just one week before at District 6 Class 3A Sectionals?
Golf is an extremely competitive sport, and landing on any professional tour -- even the "minor league" Korn Ferry Tour has been something that has eluded nearly every incredible golfer you have ever known in your personal life.
In that way, it makes sense that it is very difficult to make the PIAA golf championship, but it's also important that the best get a chance to compete at it.
That's why the PIAA has state qualifying standards in track and field.
Just last year, Bishop Carroll Catholic's Eli Cunningham finished fourth in the District 6 Class 2A long jump. Normally, only the top three finishers out of the District 6 Class 2A field advance to the state meet, but because Cunningham reached the state qualifying standard on a day where four athletes had great days, he got the chance to compete with the best.
Given that chance, Cunningham took home a silver medal and was just a quarter of an inch from tying the state champion.
Steiner also deserves that chance.
The Hollidaysburg senior only got into golf seriously as a freshman and has continued to improve each year before finally blossoming into one of the top golfers in the area this season.
He's earned the respect of golfers -- including his State College rivals -- and golf coaches from across the state.
Only five golfers in the field of 72 finished the 2025 PIAA Class 3A championship under par, and Steiner has proven he has the capability to do that on the biggest stage he's played in at the high school level -- the District 6 championship.
There is still a possibility Steiner could be selected to advance according to PIAA executive director Mark Byers.
"Each district or region that has guaranteed qualifiers -- the players are required in order to accept that qualifying spot to shoot 100 or better in their district qualifying event," Byers said. "If they do not and a district or region does not fill their allotment, the next deserving kids would be anyone who hasn't advanced from each of the districts."
Byers said he believed six golfers made it into the field that way last season.
"Last year, I'm going from memory," Byers said. "I believe we had four different golfers in double-A advance in that fashion and a couple in triple-A as well. We do the same thing for the team competition as well."
A couple years ago, the Hollidaysburg girls golf team made it to states through that process after not winning their PIAA regional but having the best score among teams that did not win.
Byers explained the process in how the selection takes place.
"There is a multiplier, and the best way to explain it is on our golf championship page and access the individual championship memorandum," Byers said. "There is an item entitled completing the field. By example, if District 6 is only sending two qualifiers, your third-place qualifier you take a combination of their score, the course rating and the slope of the course to try to as best as we can equalize those next deserving kids to advance. With those adjusted scores. The next deserving kids would be invited to complete the field."
The formula, straight from that memorandum is -- next deserving qualifier = lowest adjusted score = (score - course rating) x (113 / course slope).
Sinking Valley Country Club has a 71.4 course rating from the white tees the District 6 championship was played on and a slope of 127.
Steiner's score would be 6.4709, which is actually much lower than the score in the example (9.6094) of a golfer who would advance in the PIAA's hypothetical scenario on its website.
But even with this window of opportunity, if all the districts fill their spots in 3A with golfers who meet the criteria of scoring 100 or below, Steiner will not be invited to play in the PIAA championship.
A qualifying standard based on the formula the PIAA is already using to fill extra slots should be instituted to guarantee all the deserving players, who performed well at their district championships, get a chance to compete for a state title.
After all, if golfers who leave a course after shooting 2-under par do so disappointed, what hope is there for the rest of us?
Boytim, who has played golf most of his life and never shot better than 76, can be reached at mboytim@altoonamirror.com or 814-946-7521. Follow him on X @BoytimMichael