Men’s Golf Battles Elements For Second Consecutive Week

After inclement weather postponed last week’s Toski Invitational, the Harvard men’s golf team met similar conditions this weekend at Army’s Mulekicker Fall Classic.

Although the tournament, held at West Point G.C., was slated for both Saturday and Sunday, torrential rain cancelled play on Saturday and shortened the invitational to an 18-hole affair Sunday.

“We were scheduled for a 10:40 tee time Saturday,” captain Andrew Klein said. “But when we left the hotel the rain was coming down very hard. It’s frustrating because you get all psyched up and mentally prepared to play a round, only to have it cancelled on you. That’s happened to us two weeks in a row and it’s really beginning to get old.”

Having spent the entirety of Saturday in their rooms trying to stay loose, the Crimson players were especially geared up for play Sunday.

“We tried to get our minds off of golf on Saturday and made sure to get plenty of rest so that when Sunday did roll around we were ready to go,” Klein said.

They also realized beforehand that the modified format of the tournament could either work to their advantage or disadvantage. With only 18 holes of play and one fewer look at the course, Harvard had substantially less room for error. If the Crimson wanted any shot at the title, it needed to come out of the gates strongly.

“The shortening of play could’ve worked for or against us,” Klein said. “If we could line up our troops and just get these 18 holes done, we wouldn’t have to worry about other teams catching us or facing a deficit going into the second round. On the other hand, if we didn’t play well, there’s no chance for redemption, which can make for a pretty long ride home.”

Unfortunately for Harvard, the format of play was less a help than a hindrance. Klein and junior Chris Wu finished with identical rounds of 77, while sophomore D.J. Hynes took third place among his teammates with a 79.

Senior Neal Hegge and junior Matt Amis rounded out Crimson scoring with rounds of 80 and 83, respectively.

Overall Harvard finished in the middle of the pack.

“This was what I would call a blah performance,” Klein said. “It was wet, cold and windy but, nonetheless, it is still disappointing. We’re generally hitting the ball well but need to focus on getting it into the hole.”

With at least two tournaments left this fall, depending on whether last week’s Toski Invitational is rescheduled, the men’s golf team still believes that it can play up to expectations in the season’s final few tournaments.

It is clear, however, that next week’s invitational at archrival Yale is the present focus of the Crimson golfers’ attention.

“Our guys handled the cold weather well this weekend,” coach Dan Mahoney said. “But we are really looking forward to taking care of business at Yale.”

The Yale course, ranked among the top 100 courses in the nation by Golf Magazine, should certainly provide a stiff enough test for Harvard’s golfers.

They can only hope that Mother Nature does not decide to complicate things for them yet again.