Weather doesn't stop golf team's preparation
The UW-Eau Claire men takes first, third in first two spring invites
Nick Gourdoux
Issue date: 4/20/09 Section: Sports
The UW-Eau Claire men's golf team returned to action this weekend for the first time since early October. On April 16, the team hosted the UW-Eau Claire Spring Invite and then traveled to Menomonie on Friday to compete in the UW-Stout Spring Invite.
The meet on Thursday was the first time the men's team played together since Oct. 6, when the team traveled to La Crosse to compete in the Ronnie Eastman Invite, where they took first place out of 15 teams. The victory was the only top-five finish for the team until Thursday.
After being forced inside for more than six months due to weather, the Blugolds took first place in their return meet.
"Even though it snowed, we worked pretty hard in the winter," sophomore Ryan Grip said. "We all worked out - lifted weights and did as much cardio as we could - and we also were able to hit some balls into nets. Most of the players also took a trip somewhere over spring break, so we got about a week of golf in. It's tough that we're in snow but we were able to play some golf in the off-season and you just have to go out there and play the best you can."Leading the way for the Blugolds was Grip, who shot 73 on the day, which put him at one over par but tied for the second best individual performance. Freshman K.R. Rucker's 74 strokes gave him the fourth best individual score. Freshman Jake Brookshaw shot 79, sophomore Loren Churness shot 80 and junior Ben Ziemann shot 84 to round out the team.
"I wouldn't say that there was any one aspect that we excelled at," Grip said. "We shot a 306, which is an average score, so we would have liked to have done a lot better."
The Blugolds also sent a gold team - the equivalent of a junior varsity squad - to compete in the event as well. Freshman Jimmy Hutchings's 75 strokes led the gold team and was good enough to tie him for fifth among all players. Sophomore Andy Derks shot a 78, freshman Matt Chybowski and junior Adam Eggebrecht finished with 80 strokes, while sophomore Jon Fleming shot an 81.
The meet on Thursday was the first time the men's team played together since Oct. 6, when the team traveled to La Crosse to compete in the Ronnie Eastman Invite, where they took first place out of 15 teams. The victory was the only top-five finish for the team until Thursday.
After being forced inside for more than six months due to weather, the Blugolds took first place in their return meet.
"Even though it snowed, we worked pretty hard in the winter," sophomore Ryan Grip said. "We all worked out - lifted weights and did as much cardio as we could - and we also were able to hit some balls into nets. Most of the players also took a trip somewhere over spring break, so we got about a week of golf in. It's tough that we're in snow but we were able to play some golf in the off-season and you just have to go out there and play the best you can."Leading the way for the Blugolds was Grip, who shot 73 on the day, which put him at one over par but tied for the second best individual performance. Freshman K.R. Rucker's 74 strokes gave him the fourth best individual score. Freshman Jake Brookshaw shot 79, sophomore Loren Churness shot 80 and junior Ben Ziemann shot 84 to round out the team.
"I wouldn't say that there was any one aspect that we excelled at," Grip said. "We shot a 306, which is an average score, so we would have liked to have done a lot better."
The Blugolds also sent a gold team - the equivalent of a junior varsity squad - to compete in the event as well. Freshman Jimmy Hutchings's 75 strokes led the gold team and was good enough to tie him for fifth among all players. Sophomore Andy Derks shot a 78, freshman Matt Chybowski and junior Adam Eggebrecht finished with 80 strokes, while sophomore Jon Fleming shot an 81.
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