Local high school golfers returned to the links for the start of the 2026 season last week, marking the beginning of the MIAA fall sports season.
Several golf squads have started strong, including Hampshire and Belchertown, while others are still ironing out the kinks through the early portion of the season.
While Hampshire County only boasts eight golf teams, there’s plenty of talent sprinkled throughout the area as just about every team’s No. 1 golfer is capable of breaking par.
Here’s a brief overview of each area golf team:
Amherst
The 2025 season was one to forget for the Hurricanes, who went winless at 0-12, but first-year head coach Jim McDonald is hoping to turn things around with a senior-heavy roster this fall.
Thirteen of Amherst’s 17 total golfers on the roster are 12th graders, however it’s been sophomore Graham Van Geissen in the No. 1 spot so far for the ‘Canes.
Seniors Callum Bohne, Gavin Duncan and Sawyer Ferro should be regular contributors for Amherst, which calls Amherst Golf Club its home course.
Belchertown
Through the opening week of matches, the Orioles are showing quite a bit of promise.
Luke Heroux has been Belchertown’s best golfer to start, while Andrew Wright and Wesley Hill have hovered in the same scoring vicinity through three matches.
Led by head coach Matt Stenuis, the Orioles strive for a more well-rounded season after starting strong in 2025, then tapering off toward the end of the season for an 8-8 overall record.
Belchertown plays out of Cold Spring Country Club.
Easthampton
The Eagles will be an intriguing team to watch this fall as Pope Francis transfer Tanner Kmetz and junior Amelia Gruber should provide one of the better one-two punches of all area teams.
With a roster loaded with upperclassmen (12 of 17), Easthampton could very well improve upon its 9-4 record from last season.
Chris Abild returns for his fourth season at the helm of the Eagles, who play out of Wyckoff Country Club in Holyoke.
“With the transfer of Tanner from Pope Francis and Amelia we will have a very strong one and two golfers to lead us off,” Abild said. “Combine that with a strong list of returning golfers we should be able to post consistent low numbers all season.”
Hampshire
Experience will be the Raiders’ calling card this fall as they return nine varsity players to the roster.
Seniors Brayden Fennessy and Cole Boissonneault expect to be Hampshire’s top two, while senior Nico Johnson and junior Colby Cabrini will add to its depth.
Seventh-grader Wes Adamski has been a pleasant surprise for the Raiders, factoring into their first two matches with rounds below 40.
Dan Korpita is back for his 15th season as Hampshire’s head coach, which play out of Blandford Country Club. Last season, the Raiders went 13-5.
Hopkins
Unlike the Raiders, the Golden Hawks will be one of the youngest teams around as no seniors began the season on the roster.
Juniors Laney Crutch and Siddharth Parmar have the most experience as the only upperclassmen, while sophomore Jessica Waskiewicz is a player to watch, according to third-year head coach Joe Whalen.
Ryley Regan, one of the best amateur golfers in the state, will not play for the Hawks this season.
Hopkins, which went 8-10 during the 2025 season, call Westover Golf Club in Granby home.
Northampton
The Blue Devils could not find the win column in 2025 after losing stalwart Reilly Fowles to graduation the spring prior.
Thomas Cairnes takes over the program as head coach this fall, which has a handful of seniors in Eli Reid, Larson Simon and Chris Weismoore that’ll look to get the squad back to its winning ways.
Northampton Country Club is the team’s home course.
Smith Voc
It’s been a steady incline for the Vikings as a golf program since its inception in 2024 as they’ve improved their record each season.
While only carrying nine golfers on its roster, Smith Voc will have seven upperclassmen, which should provide a solid foundation for a team in its third season of existence.
Third-year coach Nate Bergeron lists sophomore Keller McMahon and junior Pat Dabrowski as players to watch, while seniors Andrew Persaud and Nate Lindahl are anticipated to be consistent scorers.
The Vikings play their home matches at Wyckoff Country Club.
South Hadley
Graduation impacted the Tigers significantly as they are without five impact players from its roster from a year ago that went 11-9.
Despite that, Ryley McMahon jumps into the No. 1 spot for South Hadley, who has been on the team for four years.
“Ryley is a leader on the team and a strong player, who we believe can be one of the top players in Western Mass.,” Tigers head coach Jason Bourque said.
Senior Mason Peters and juniors Richard Brown and Grant Henderson look to fill out the rest of South Hadley’s scoring in its top four.
“We have a lot of change in our lineup and are hoping to show improvement throughout the season,” Bourque said.
