After nine holes, Albert Lea High School boys’ golf coach Matt Addington was greeted by a series of complaints from his players.

He told them all the same thing.

&uot;I said, ‘It’s windy all over the course. It’s windy for everybody. It will even out in the end,’&uot; said Addington.

In the end, the Tigers had a big victory, 329-336 over Rochester Mayo in an 18-hole meet at Green Lea Golf Course Monday.

&uot;It was a good win against a team a lot of people feel is one of the favorites in the Big Nine,&uot; said Addington, whose Tigers improved to 2-0 overall.

According to Addington, intelligent play was the key to success in winds from 20 to 30 mph.

&uot;The kids that scored well today are the ones that keep the ball in play,&uot; said Addington. &uot;They play a little safer, so the ball’s where you can recover from some mistakes. In weather like that, small mistakes are magnified. The kids played a real smart game today.&uot;

Josh Jones led the Tigers, shooting 40 on both sides for an 80. Dan Breuer and Ross Stadheim shot 82, Ben Jones 85. Missing the scoring cut were Adam Elseth, 83; and Beau Larson, 85.

Mayo’s Mike Gerzsenyi fired a 78 for medalist honors.

The Tigers’ junior varsity opened the season with a 343-344 victory. Scoring were Jon Breuer, 85; Troy Farnes, 85; Alex Lair, 85; and Matt Bennett, 88. The medalist was Mayo’s Peter Bartelson with an 84.

The Tigers are scheduled to travel to Fairmont for a nonconference meet on Thursday.