After five months without competitive play, Brown’s golf teams began their season over spring break. The long winter break took its toll on the teams, resulting in low finishes.
Men’s team struggles with shots in California meet
The men’s golf team competed in the Anteater Invitational March 25 and 26, hosted by the University of California at Irvine at the El Niguel Country Club. Competing against ten other teams, the Bears finished in last place with a 54-hole score of 952. Long Beach State University won the event, carding a 54-hole score of 891.
“The tournament obviously wasn’t the way we would’ve liked to play,” said co-captain JD Ardell ’13. “That being said, everyone learned a lot about what they needed to improve upon.”
Peter Callas ’14 led the Bears with a score of 235 to finish 40th among individuals. Jack Wilson ’16 handed in a 241 for the tournament, earning him 56th overall.
The team spent the rest of break working on its game in Arizona, where the weather was much more ideal for practice than it was in Rhode Island.
“Given the poor weather in Providence and lack of practice time, the event served as a way to test our games before the Ivy season,” Ardell said.
The team was particularly shaky with its consistency, said Head Coach Michael Hughes.
“It seemed we would play 14 or 15 good holes then get derailed by a double or triple bogey,” Hughes said.
After a third place finish at the Ivy Matchplay Tournament in the fall campaign, Brown hopes to compete for the Ivy crown this season, Ardell said. The Bears start their bid for Ivy glory April 6 at the Yale Spring Opener.
Women’s team opens season in rain-shortened event
Though inclement weather cut out the first scheduled day at the Low Country Intercollegiate in Hilton Head, S.C., the women’s golf team earned 12th place out of 16 schools with a team score of 349.
Western Carolina University clinched the victory by shooting a 328 on the par-72 Moss Creek South Golf Club.
The team was anchored by its underclassmen, as Maggie Min ’16 and co-captain Stephanie Hsieh ’15 achieved Brown’s best scores of 85 and 86, respectively. Hsieh said the entire team took the meet as a learning experience.
“The weather’s been terrible in Providence,” Hsieh said. “We learned that it’s hard to come back after the winter and play like you were in the fall season. We just appreciated it for giving us exposure after a so-called winter hibernation.”
The team had trouble hitting greens in regulation and choosing the right shots to take in given situations, Hsieh said. Due to tough practice conditions in Providence, much of the squad’s winter preparation was done indoors.
“We practiced a lot of putting over the winter,” Hsieh said. “Because of that, we all had really good short games. The putting facilities in the OMAC have been awesome.”
Bruno goes back to work at the Georgetown Invitational, which will be held April 8 and 9 in Beallsville, Md.
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