The Hoover High boys’ golf program is back.

With practices underway four days a week, social science teacher Kirk Sharma is excited to lead the newly reinstated boys’ golf team into its upcoming spring season.

Sharma brings years of coaching experience, including six years of middle school basketball and volleyball, as well as two years coaching boys’ volleyball at Hoover.

“I always wanted to coach golf,” Sharma said. “I even wanted to do it when I first came to Hoover, but I was told there might not have been enough interest among the students.”

That changed last year when Sharma began coaching the girls’ golf team alongside English teacher Juliana Salce.

“I wasn’t going to do boys,” Sharma explained. “But there was enthusiasm for it among several students. I was surprised. We have some really great young players.”

One of the team’s standout golfers is freshman Jordan Toon, who has been playing for four years.

“[I like] getting good shots,” Toon said. “I’ve always loved golf and sports. I’m looking forward to competing in tournaments against other schools and having a good time with the golfers.”

While the team is not expecting an overly competitive season in its first year back, Sharma is focused on building fundamentals and developing a dedicated, hard-working group of golfers.

“We have an abbreviated schedule for our first season,” Sharma said. “Luckily, we have such a young team that we’re going to have a full season next year, and they’re pretty much going to be ready for it.”

Sharma emphasized that patience will be key to the program’s growth.

“Golf is not a sport where you can just pick it up and be amazing at it in a few days or weeks,” he said. “I think we’ll be successful to the extent that we’re getting better each and every day and building a program from scratch here at Hoover.”