Gardiner’s Jack Quinn sinks a putt on first hole during a golf match Wednesday at the Augusta Country Club in Manchester. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal

It’s hard to beat the situation Ian Gould walked into as a first-year head coach.

Sure, anyone would be thrilled with the prospect of coaching their son, as Gould is doing with the Gardiner golf team’s top senior, Austin. The combination of his son and defending Class B runner-up Jack Quinn means not many teams around boast the 1-2 punch the Tigers do this year.

“(Former head coach Ryan Low) believed we had the two best golfers in the state last year, and I still believe that right now,” Gould said. “To be able to coach your kid, especially for his senior year, that’s really special. I’m really excited about all the great kids we have.”

There’s a similar excitement around central Maine, where programs across the board have numbers, talent, or, in many cases, both. Top returning golfers, exciting newcomers and impressive depth should set the stage for an intriguing local golf season in 2024.

Messalonskee enjoyed a remarkable season a year ago. Led by the Class A state runner-up in Jake Moody, fellow senior Garrett Giguere, sophomore Liam McFadden and freshmen Gavin Jackson, the Eagles finished as Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference Class A runners-up.

Moody and Giguere have graduated, but Jackson and McFadden are back leading Messalonskee this fall. Those two shot a respective 39 and 45 in last week’s opener against Skowhegan, and with the help of Donovan Hermann (43) and Greyson Dooley (44), the Eagles managed a 13-stroke victory.

“We lost some good players from last year in Jacob Moody and Garrett Giguere, but we’ve gained some new, young players,” said Messalonskee head coach Gene Dumont. “We’re excited. They have potential, but we say that every year. With 14-15-and-16-year olds, you just never know. They’ve been playing some good practice rounds.”

Skowhegan enters the season with 18 golfers, its largest roster in program history. Eddie Goff, the team’s top golfer in the opening match against Skowhegan with a 41, leads the River Hawks, who also have Lydia Jones (46), Silas Tibbetts (48) and Josh Fitzgerald (49).

Greyson Dooley and Gavin Jackson of Messalonskee, and Eddie Goff and Josh Fitzgerald of Skowhegan, walk on the fairway at the third hole at Belgrade Lakes Golf Course on Wednesday. Anna Chadwick/Morning Sentinel

“Eddie, score-wise, is above the rest, but (players) 2-8, I think the difference for our practice rounds is maybe four strokes, and the difference between 2 and 6 right now is 2.1,” said Skowhegan head coach Dave Martin. “(The lineup) is pretty interchangeable.”

In Class B, the duo of Quinn and Gould looks to keep Gardiner competitive in every match. Quinn has shot 34s in both of the Tigers’ matches to date, while Gould recorded a 40 in the opener against Medomak Valley before notching a 39 in the team’s second match against Morse.

The biggest task for Gardiner, then, will be to get the golfers in the next few slots to grow as the season goes on. Ian Gould sees a lot of talent in freshman Hunter Stark, and Brady Peacock has already shot sub-50 nine-hole rounds twice, something Gould had set as a goal.

“The hope is for those middle golfers to be able to get them going and to be able to break 50 consistently, and if we can do that, we’ll be fine,” Gould said. “I’ve got a senior in Dana Roberts who is really come along and a talented freshman (in Stark). I think we’re going to be pretty good.”

Also competitive in Class B will be Nokomis, which had an undefeated regular season last year before winning the KVAC Class B title thanks to a 74 from S.J. Welch. Welch shot a 36 for the Warriors in their season-opening win over Erskine Academy.

Nokomis, though, is far from a one-person show. Daegan Trafton shot a 37 for the Warriors in their second match against Lawrence, and Caden Chretien recorded a 43 against Erskine and a 41 against Lawrence. Seven golfers shot sub-50 rounds for Nokomis in the victory over Erskine.

Elsewhere in Class B, Cony loses Alex Fournier and Oliver Rodrigue but brings back an All-KVAC player in Matt Boston. The Rams had a strong season in 2023, going undefeated in the regular season before finishing as KVAC B runners-up to Nokomis.

“You always look at Cony because they’re our rival and a team that’s there at the top every year,” Gould said. “Going undefeated in the conference like they did last year, that’s not an easy thing to do, and then they went and had a great round (at KVACs). They’ll be tough.”

Lawrence, which tied Cony for second at KVACs, returns three All-KVAC golfers in Jacob Frazee, Zachary Hill and Liz Holden. Hill and Holden both shot 44s in the season opener against Nokomis, while Frazee also had a solid round for the Bulldogs with a 46.

Maranacook was expected to be one of central Maine’s strongest contenders a year ago, and the Black Bears didn’t disappoint. They won the Mountain Valley Conference title in their conference debut and came three strokes shy of defending their Class C state title.

Maranacook’s Ben Jewett tees off during a match at the Augusta Country Club on Wednesday. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal

Despite the losses of Ben Chilton, Wyatt Folsom and Keegan McClure, Maranacook has the pieces to win another MVC title and challenge for the Class C crown again. Returning players Ethan Chilton and Ben Jewett were first-team All-MVC picks last year, and Grady Hreben and James Marr were second-teamers.

“We’re bringing back five of our top seven from last year,” said Maranacook head coach Ryan Meserve. “We’ve got 14 on the team, and we’ve got a lot of them competing for the top six. It’s a core group that we’ve had for a while, and we’re excited that we have them for one more year.”

Chilton and Marr led the way in Maranacook’s season-opening win against Mountain Valley at Augusta Country Club last week with scores of 37 and 39, respectively. Hreben and Jewett shot 42s, and Josh Herzing, a freshman who’s impressed Meserve, recorded a 44.

“I think one benefit we’ve had is that, with how many good players we’ve had, it’s helped us get a lot better in practice,” Meserve said. “The young guys come in and play with those guys, and they start to learn things. I’ve noticed those (younger) kids take notice of them and get better at golf.”

Just down the road from Maranacook in another corner of Readfield, Kents Hill looks set for some success in 2024. The Huskies bring back Amelie Zachrisson, the Class C girls-runner-up from a year ago, as well as Ben Chapdelaine, who shot a 76 in the Class C boys field to place sixth.

Elsewhere in Class C, Winthrop returns Colton Baird, a second-team All-MVC selection who shot an 88 for the Ramblers at Class C states. Mt. Abram brings back Laurel Sleeper, who took fourth in last year’s state Class C girls competition.