- December 4, 2025
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The Mustangs have spent over a decade chasing the pinnacle they once knew so well.
In recent years, they’ve been so very close.
They settled for state runner-up in 2023, 23 strokes short of the champ, and last year, the squad was only six shots shy, again finishing second.
New season. Different journey. Same mission. Their goal is to rediscover that championship level.
“It’s a good group, because everybody can beat each other on any given day,” said senior Jack Wessinger. “We have five players who, if they play a really good round, they’ll shoot anywhere from a couple under to even par.”
Lakewood Ranch boys golf is less than one month away from the postseason. Boasting the reputation of a regular contender in FHSAA Class 3A, coach Dave Frantz and his players are hunting for the school's first state title in 12 years.
A gold standard was set for the program back then, when the Mustangs turned their first-ever state championship into a renaissance, ultimately producing a three-peat from 2011 to 2013.
Now, they’re relying on a revamped roster to try to scale the mountain.
Four of their top five golfers from last season are gone. Parker Severs — current freshman for Florida men’s golf — was the biggest loss, having tied for second individually at the 2024 FHSAA 3A state championship. Henry Burbee, who placed T-20th in the state tournament, moved on as well, to West Florida in Division II.
Another loss was Luke Wilson, and though he’s not competing at the next level, he was a premier player.
The exit of now-junior Brett Traver to become starting quarterback for the school’s football team only exacerbated the turnover.
But at Lakewood Ranch High, someone always is waiting in the wings.
“I think it’s the record that we have over the past couple years, and our coach has a great reputation,” said sophomore Will Thomas. “(Aspiring golfers) just see our team’s past, and that’s what makes it attractive.”
Frantz has seven players listed on his varsity “green team” roster this season. Among that group, junior Owen Gellatly offers continuity.
Transferring into Lakewood Ranch from Canada ahead of last season, the then-sophomore quickly established himself as one of the team’s premier young talents, carding a combined 152 to finish T-23rd individually at the 2024 state championship. He was just one stroke behind Burbee.
That also makes Gellatly the only player still on the roster who placed at those championships.
In 2025, the Mustangs’ top-two players by average score are Wessinger and fellow senior Brock Blackwell, as of matches completed through last Thursday.
Blackwell finished fourth individually at one-over-par in the East Coast PGA High School Championship — staged from Sept. 19 to 20 — as Lakewood Ranch (+31) wound up second behind Oxbridge (+15).
For Wessinger, the weeks to come are about rounding out his game to complement the power he’s already getting off the tee.
“I’m hitting the ball pretty well,” Wessinger said. “I’ve just got to work on a little short game stuff, a little irons, and then I think I’ll be in a pretty good spot for the rest of the year.”
As a whole, the team strung together several quality outings last month after three finishes of fifth or worse across their first four tournaments. The Mustangs found a groove, beginning with second place at the Lakewood Ranch Invitational Sept. 5-6.
Three consecutive title performances followed.
Winning the George Jenkins, Mooney Match Play and Crutchfield-Hawkins Invitationals on Sept. 8, 13 and 15, respectively, they had success in the tee box, on the fairways and on the putting greens.
“We definitely have high expectations for ourselves, always. For any tournament we go to, we’re always trying to win,” Wessinger said. “Put ourselves in good spots, and then see where we go from there.”
The playoffs are fast-approaching, with the FHSAA Class 3A District 11 tournament set for Oct. 27 at Venice’s Jacaranda West Golf Club. And tune-up opportunities are quickly evaporating — three contests remain in the Mustangs’ regular-season slate.
Lakewood Ranch will travel to Sandridge Country Club for the Vero Beach Invitational on Oct. 11. Afterward comes the Manatee County Championship on Oct. 13, followed by a multi-opponent home match on Oct. 23, playing Cardinal Mooney, Saint Stephen’s Episcopal and Sarasota.
It’ll be the first time Thomas experiences the rigors of postseason preparation. He was on junior varsity — the silver team — as a freshman, but has earned his way into the program’s top seven.
Even with talents of years past no longer in the picture, he senses something that could bode well for the Mustangs in pursuit of a team title.
“I’ve noticed it seems more together than last year,” Thomas said. “I feel like everybody’s a lot closer than everybody was last year.”
