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.
At the beginning of the fall season, the Blugolds struggled to get off to a fast start, finishing no higher than sixth place in the first month of the season, something Grip attributes to the team’s youth.
“Obviously, the more experienced the team is the better they are going to play,” he said. “(Being so young) has hurt us a little, definitely in this past fall. We started a little slow, mainly because we are so new and young. We have a lot of ability on the team, but it was just a matter of getting our feet on the ground.”
The slow starts are seemingly a thing of the past as the Blugolds once again finished within the top five at the UW-Stout Spring Invite. Churness and Grip each finished three strokes above par after shooting 74 strokes each – good enough to place them in a tie for second place overall. Brookshaw’s 80 strokes was good enough to put him into a tie for the No. 21 spot, while Ziemann and Rucker shot an 81 and 83, respectively.
The Blugolds second team, this time referred to as the UW-Eau Claire Blue team, was once again led by Hutchings’s 77 strokes, which placed him in a tie for the No. 12 spot overall. Derks shot 79, which placed him in a tie for the No. 17 spot overall.
Eau Claire will compete again on Monday and Tuesday in the Gustavus Spring Invite in Minnesota before finishing off the season with the Edgewood Spring Invite in Madison on May 1.
“Because the season is so short, you really have a short period of time to play well and prove yourself,” Grip said. “You really have to focus on these few events and play your best. If you screw up now you’re not going to have time to make up for it.”
