When first organized by then Wildcat head golf coach Charlie Burgoyne the Highlands Invitational Tournament was meant to serve as an unofficial “opening day” for regional high school golf.
In 2026, the tournament has likely proved a launching pad for what current varsity golf coach Mike Eye hopes will be another standout season for the Pendleton County squad.
“It was a really good day,” noted Eye. “I am super excited for this team.”
This year, the high school team has 11 members, and the middle school team has seven. With limitations on team size at some seasonal tournaments, as well as regionals and states, Eye had to form varsity and junior varsity squads. When a school first has to do this, Eye says, it means that “the program is really taking off.”
Formed under the tutelage of Burgoyne and into the tenure of Eye, Wildcat golf has grown in numbers and competitiveness, as evidenced by the performance in their first match of the year.
With seasonal heat and higher-than-average humidity, the teams took to the links at 1 p.m. last Thursday. While much of the rest of Pendleton County got soaking rains and thunder all afternoon, storms avoided the course until after the final players finished up their rounds.
Traditionally, the Highlands Invitational invites a mixture of larger and smaller schools. One Class AAAA school, University, sent a team. Lewis County, Keyser, Frankfort, Hampshire, and Moorefield also sent teams. Class A schools included the host Pendleton County, Tygarts Valley, and Tucker County.
University, who Eye stated has “great golfers,” won the 18-hole tournament with the lowest score of 311. Hampshire followed with 333 and Lewis County 347.
Placing fourth was Pendleton County with 352, top Class A team in the field. Behind the Wildcats were recent Class AAA golf power Keyser with 361, Tygarts Valley at 372, Tucker County 384, Moorefield 395, and Frankfort at 401.
Junior Dylan Eye topped the Wildcat tally with a score of 82 with sophomore Landon Davis right behind at 86. Eye called the two his “1A and 1B” rather than first and second on the squad, referring to them as “neck and neck.” Though close in ability, Coach Eye states that “they compete and work together to try and prepare.”
“They are solid in ability, the mental side of the game, and course management,” he added.
Jacob Thompson, a freshman, held the number one spot on last year’s middle school team and ranks third on the varsity this season. Eye praised his “maturity” and his “nice swing.” He scored a 95 in his first varsity action. Hayden Kimble earned an 89 and Kolby Kimble a 107. Jack Bennett rounds off the varsity squad in the sixth position.
Having three players with scores in the 80s alone is a remarkable accomplishment for a smaller school team with no seniors.
Coach Eye emphasized that as the season progresses, junior varsity players can earn their way into varsity competition. An app called , which tallies 62 percent of high school golf matches in the United States, keeps precise data on scoring, even down to difficulty of courses and holes. Like MaxPreps in other sports, iWannamaker ranks players by this data. Eye shared that he will use rankings from this service to determine varsity and junior varsity as the season progresses.
Junior varsity players will have a separate schedule of matches in some instances because, as Eye explained, a number of regional teams have expanded to the point of needing both squads.
The head coach credits the flourishing middle school program for the continual climb of the high school these past few years. “It shows when you play other schools that don’t have middle school teams. You can see the decline in quality of players they have.” He explained that middle school teams teach fundamentals of the game, advancing the players in ability much earlier.
Eye also thanked the school system for the addition of a middle school head coach and assistant. Eye described the challenge when he and Burgoyne tried to coach both, saying, “We were spread too thin. We couldn’t coach them the way we needed to.”
With the first match under their belt and , Eye is excited about the potential for the season and after, saying, “It’s when, not if, we make the state tournament this year.”
