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08/27/2024 10:47 AMHunter Beckwith has had a long storied history with the Deep River Horseshoe League through family connections. Yet this past campaign, he stepped right onto the scene for the first time and rang up some superb success and carved out his own name.
The 20-year old Guilford resident spent much of his youth on the basketball court and the baseball diamond. During that active, athletic childhood, slinging shoes was the furthest thing from Hunter’s mind. Yet over the course of the last couple of years, he began to draw an interest in horseshoes and started practicing the craft. This year, he joined the Deep River Horseshoe League and jumped right on board with the White Sox squad. He helped the club carve out a postseason bid–even more impressively jumping into the fray as a B League player.
“I was so very happy to qualify for the league as a B player,” says Hunter. “Honestly, it simply came from a lot of practice over and over the last year or so. I live with my parents, and so my dad and I have horseshoe pits in the backyard, so we just keep playing. He also moved up from being a C League player to B, so it was also nice to play on the same level as him.”
It is truly a family affair with Hunter and the league, as not only his father, but additionally his uncle and cousin, are part of the group. He explains that this summer it did not always work out with vacations and scheduling that they could each play with each other, though he is happy to add to the lineage.
“My dad, uncle, and cousin have been in the league for awhile,” Hunter says. “When we do get together, even outside of the league, it is a lot of fun when the four of us play. It is great to go up against each other, but this year due to when people took vacations, I was only able to play against my dad in the league. But it is a lot of fun to keep this tradition going in the league.”
Speaking more about the sport and the league itself, Hunter remarks how it is so intriguing to see how many different people from varying communities and skill levels gather. He adds that it is such a pleasant sight to see how anyone can simply pick up and play.
“It is a fun experience playing against everyone and the competition,” Hunter says. “There are so many different play/throwing styles. I also love how any age can pick up and play in the league. It is a great game and league to get involved with.”
Elaborating further on the camaraderie of the clubs and the group as a whole, there are so many guys who gravitate towards each other on the teams. In a league with squad names modeled after Major League Baseball, the competitors truly exhibit a professional form of support.
“It has been interesting this year because we had another C player on our team, and then we also had teammates who had been playing for awhile,” says Hunter. “It is fun to see how players who have and have not played for awhile are on the team and come together. It was also great to see our team make the playoffs.”
Hunter qualified with a 24-point average for the league, which garnered him eligibility to be a B league player. He also recently just had his season-best game of 114 points, 27 ringers, and a pair of doubles, and part of the 114 points was a season-best game of 45 points, 12 ringers, and two doubles. It is rare for a B player to toss a game of 40 points or more. Hunter is just the third B player to score 45 points this summer.
“Breaking 100 points in a game was great because it was something I always wanted to do,” Hunter says. “It was even better when I did it a few more times this year. Playing against my dad was also another highlight. His team got the win, so hopefully I can be part of a win next time. We did not think we would make the playoffs, so that was also a great thing to achieve as a team.”
Building off of that success as a rookie, Hunter looks to hone in on his sharpness as a thrower. He looks to hit the pin and make sure he is not shooting beyond it. A mid-year shakeup to his strategy proved to pay dividends additionally.
“I always want to improve upon my accuracy,” says Hunter. “I want to focus on throwing at the stake and not by or beyond it. Midseason, I changed my technique and how I threw my show, which helped me. I also want to work on where my feet are, along with my accuracy, because those two things are everything.”
Deep River Horseshoe League mainstay Joe Heery proclaims that Hunter has a form that is to be marveled at. Furthermore, he possesses a professional composure that has also helped him go far with something he does for leisure.
“He is a very quiet and shy young man always with a smile, and his flips of the shoes are a thing of beauty to watch, which many players have commented on, ” says Heery. “He is very conscious and methodical in his delivery and doesn't get upset by a bad toss or a bad game. He puts that behind him and goes about trying to correct it on his next toss. He probably was expecting to be a substitute, but when one of the B League players had to drop out prior to the start of the season, he was the best qualified to fill the position. Although he is a rookie in the league, he has many of the veterans admiring his game.”
Moving towards the future, Hunter wants to keep chasing those championship dreams. An ultimate gamer and competitor, he simply does not want to be a passenger to the ride of a title, but he wants to figure as a formidable factor by working diligently on his game.
“I want to continue to improve as a player,” Hunter says. “In the short term for us, we made the playoffs this year, so I just want to see our team continue that level of success. I just simply want to keep getting better and improve as much as I can as a player.”