Acres upon acres of green, mowed grass and Canadian geese lazily basking in blue ponds is just the background scenery for the school’s golf team, which has the luxury of practicing at the elite Los Altos Golf and Country Club.

The team consists of 11 players this year, many of whom are veterans to the game of golf. However, previous knowledge of the game is not required, according to golf coach Dave Blasquez.

“We’re here to teach kids how to play and get them excited about the sport,” Blasquez said.

This year the team has a few returning upperclassmen, such as junior Toby The and seniors Andrew Kaneshiro, Derek Halliwell and Taylor Daw.

“We have some great new players this year and we’re expecting a really great season,” Toby said.

According to Toby’s younger sister, teammate and sophomore Tessa The, the team is improving steadily and “has potential.” Tessa, who placed sixth at CCS last year, is considered a “team legend” by several of her teammates.

“I think we can do even better than last year because so many people have improved from our previous season,” Tessa said.

Sophomore Sean Kawaguchi feels the team has a chance at winning the state championship game and at least qualifying for CCS.

“We have a great shot at making CCS this year and same with the state [championship],” Sean said. “I have no doubt that we will qualify.”

With January 28 marking the season kickoff, the team is just beginning to get back into the seasonal routine of practices and matches. Freshmen Arjun Madhok, Andrew Carp and Saekyul “Sky” Yoo and sophomore Davis Beckstead are just starting to figure out what that routine is.

“I’m just jumping into it after playing basketball,” Andrew said. “I’ve played golf before, but it’s still totally new and different. I’m just starting to get the hang of it.”

The team practices one hour every day together at Shoreline Golf Links in Mountain View and play their matches at the Los Altos Golf and Country Club. Their next match is scheduled for Monday, March 10, against San Benito at 3:30 p.m.