Long after the high school season ended, Harrison Price is still swinging his golf clubs.

Price shot 161 during the first two rounds of the 35th Washington Junior Golf Association Championship in Walla Walla last week.

“I hit the ball better than ever,” Price said.

For the first round at Wine Valley Golf Course, Price shot an 81. He described the course as a links course, which benefited his drives.

“You can pretty much hit the ball anywhere,” Price said.

On the second day, he improved his score by one stroke on Thursday at Walla Walla Country Club. The course differed from Wine Valley in its narrow fairways with high tree lines.

A single stroke, however, was not enough of an improvement for Price.

“One stroke here and there, you feel pretty good,” Price said. “Five or six (strokes) would be better.”

Despite improving his second round score, Price did not qualify for the championship round Friday. He said his short game was off.

“I had a tough time around the greens,” he said.

His summer was spent practicing, playing and qualifying for the state championship. Price, 17, played in a series of junior golf tournaments. To qualify for the WJGA championship tournament, Price played in four district qualifiers.

In June, he played at Sudden Valley Golf and Country Club and Port Ludlow Golf Course. Price qualified for the district tournament at Sudden Valley, the first district qualifier June 23. Then he had the rest of the tournaments to practice and prepare.

“It felt amazing,” Price said of qualifying early.

The District 1 championship was at Whidbey Golf & Country Club in Oak Harbor July 18 and 19. Price shot a two-day score of 165 and was one of the final two qualifiers for the state championship. It was a benchmark for Price, who missed qualifying for the state championship last year.

The WJGA championship hosts 66 of Washington and the Idaho Panhandle’s best high school golfers between 14 and 17 years old. It also spans across school classifications, so 1A, 2A, 3A and 4A high schools are all represented.

Price will be a senior at South Whidbey High School, which is a 2A program. In May, he competed in the state 2A golf championship for a second time and shot an 89 but missed the second day qualifying mark by four strokes.

The big tournament is over, but Price still has golf to play. He is registered to play in a golf tournament at The Golf Club at Hawks Prairie in Lacey in August.

“I feel like, right now, if I get my short game where it needs to be, I’ll be right there, Price said.”