Icy temperatures, a chilling wind and rain showers were the conditions the men’s and women’s golf teams faced this week as they hosted their Baker University Spring Invitational.
“The men’s division played three 18-hole rounds,” coach Karen Exon said. “We played two of them on Monday; we played 36 holes, which is a lot of golf, and we played 18 holes on Tuesday.”
The women competed in the tournament as well. However, as opposed to a total of 54 holes, the women played 18 holes on Monday and 18 holes on Tuesday.
Because of the less-than-perfect conditions, the tournament started off with a 30-minute delay, while the teams waited for frost to melt from the course.
“They got us out at about 8:30, and it was about 32 degrees,” Exon said. “They played along for about 35 or 40 minutes, and the next thing we knew it was snowing.”
The snow flurries didn’t stop the golfers as they continued through the course, and despite the temperatures, they were able to see the positive side of the weather that day.
“The fortunate thing for us on Monday was that the wind was only about five miles per hour, and it eventually warmed up, but the kids were still really cold,” Exon said.
In the first day of competition, senior Dave Tregemba was able to shoot scores that earned him all-tournament team honors.
“I was especially pleased with Dave. He shot scores of 79, 78 and 76; par is 72. What he did was tie himself individually for third overall in the entire tournament,” Exon said.
Tregemba felt his performance was not his best, but he recognized that the weather definitely played a role in the outcome.
“I played all right,” Tregemba said. “It was really cold, and I think everybody, myself included, gave away a few strokes to the weather.” Exon was also impressed with a performance by freshman Jared Drummond who was playing in only his second varsity opportunity.
“He played very well in the first two rounds. He shot scores of 78 and 79 on Monday. I was very pleased with him,” Exon said.
Drummond said he was happy with his performance on Monday, but because of the weather, he missed a few opportunities he could have capitalized on.
“You’re out there in the cold, and you get frustrated, but mentally you just have to go out and shoot for par. Don’t be really aggressive – just play safe,” Drummond said. “For me I was a little more conservative in my play.”
At the end of Monday’s competition, the men’s team was in third place behind Graceland University and Missouri Valley College. The women also finished the day in third behind Park University and Missouri Valley.
Tuesday’s play brought higher temperatures, but along with it, a steady wind of about 10 miles per hour, which resulted in an unpleasantly cold wind chill.
Senior Beth Taylor was able to have an impressive performance that earned her a spot on the all-tournament team.
“She turned out a score of 88 on Tuesday. She had the fourth-best score of the day,” Exon said.
After two days of play, both the men’s and women’s teams pulled ahead to place second in the tournament. Exon said she was happy with not only the performances but also the attitudes of all her athletes.
“I was really impressed every one of our kids finished, nobody complained, nobody quit, and they all played hard and played well considering the conditions,” Exon said.