The ACU golf team finished 11th at the Jim West Intercollegiate earlier this week at Wolfdancer Golf Club. ACU finished with 901 points (+37) collectively.
Saint Mary’s University won the tournament with a score of 848 points (-16).
The golf team struggled hitting the ball well this week. Head coach Coach Shaw said the team did not hit the ball close enough to the hole to give the team legitimate birdie chances.
“We scrambled to save par most of the time while other teams were putting for birdies,” Shaw said.
The Bermuda greens at Wolfdancer Golf Club were another struggle the team faced when finishing each hole.
“The slow Bermuda grass greens are not something that we see much during the year and we struggled with putting on them and chipping into them,” Shaw said.
Ryan Beatty, a junior who placed lowest for the Wildcats this week, said the most challenging part of the tournament was the course’s greens.
“They were different than anything we have played all season and it proved to be a challenge for us to make as many putts as we normally do,” Beatty said.
Finishing as a team in 11th place and having the best individual score tied for 36th in the field, made it difficult to see many positives from this week’s play.
“To be honest, I didn’t really see any, other than continuing to gain experience on different golf courses against different teams,” Shaw said. “It helps us establish a barometer of where we are and where we need to go.”
The team will need to practice hard the next couple of days if they look to compete well in the Southland Conference Championship this coming week.
“The next few days of practice will be critical,” Shaw said. “We have to strike the ball better. Stonebridge Country Club is unrelenting. It will make you look silly if you are not prepared or not hitting it well.”
Beatty also said ball striking was what he would be working on before the conference championship.
“As a team we made way to many bogeys and not anywhere close to enough birdies,” Beatty said.
