Freshman Bella Flores leads Kingwood to State

Freshman Bella Flores leads Kingwood to State (Copyright (c) 2021 VYPE - All rights reserved)

The great Bobby Jones once said, "Competitive golf is played mainly on a five-and-a-half-inch course, the space between your ears." Usually, it takes years of maturity and discipline to sharpen your mentality enough to shoot low scores.

Enter Bella Flores.

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A freshman at Kingwood High School, Flores is ranked No. 63 in the world in the AJGA Rolex Rankings for the Class of 2024 and plays the game years ahead of her time. In just a few weeks she will lead Kingwood to the state golf tournament.


This is the fourth year in a row the lady Mustangs have made it to the state tournament. Last season the UIL state golf tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the previous five seasons have been won by either Westlake or Lake Travis. Kingwood has their eyes on the trophy this season and Bella Flores expects a high finish at state.

The young freshman does not seem phased by the pressure and is ready to lead Kingwood playing as the No. 1 player, though the team is loaded. Kingwood won the District 21-6A team title, shooting 299-316--615, while Flores won the individual title shooting an impressive 72-77--149. Her teammates Kaetlin Halseth and Morgan Ankenbrandt finished second and third respectively. In the Region III-6A tournament, Kingwood finished second behind Seven Lakes, by only one stroke, after two days of golf while Bella Flores finished ninth individually.

Similar to Will Zalatores at The Masters, this is the first time Bella Flores will be on the big stage at the state tournament. The competition will be fierce, but expect Flores to be near the top of the leaderboard.

The UIL 6A State Golf Tournament will be held May 10-11 at Legacy Hills Golf Club in Georgetown, TX.