Defending champs men's golf, Hoopes head to Ivy tourney

As returning champions of the upcoming Ivy League tournament, the men's golf team feels the climate favorable for another victory. Only two opposing teams and a tough golf course threaten to rain on the Tigers' high hopes for Ivy League domination.

Another intimidating factor is that Princeton has history on its side. With 17 Ivy League titles, the Tigers have the most championships in league history.

Recently, Princeton has commanded the Ivy League field by winning the championship four consecutive years in 1992-1995. After losing the title to Yale in 1996 and 1997, Penn in 1998 and Columbia in 1999, Princeton came back strong in 2000 with a sweeping victory over all three schools — both in team and individual totals.

The 2000 Ivy League championship tournament opened with Penn pulling ahead on the first day, carding a 301 to Princeton's 304. Princeton gained momentum and took control, however, finishing in first place with an 895 total — nine strokes better than Penn's 904. Yale finished third, carding a 910, while defending champion Columbia pulled into fourth with a 933 finish.

The Tigers also reigned individually in the 2000 championship. Then freshman, now sophomore Nat Hoopes won the title. With the first two rounds carded at 71, Hoopes took command right from the onset. Although Hoopes faltered in the third round with a score of 77, he ended on top with a total of 219.

Following Hoopes was the 1999 winner, Penn's Chad Perman, with a score of 221. Princeton's Judd Pritchard '00 seized third place, winning in a tie-breaker over Penn's Kyle Moran. Junior James Milam placed fifth, while sophomore Cassidy Traub took 11th and senior Peter McWhorter finished 14th.

The Tigers feel confident in their chances for a repeat victory in the upcoming 2001 championship.

"I truly believe that we are the best team in the tournament, and so we just need to play like it," Hoopes said. "As the defending champion — both as a team and also individually — I have a great feeling about it."

The players are determined to win, but they realize it will not be an easy victory. Princeton recognizes that history repeats itself, and thus anticipates competition from the teams that have overthrown them in recent years, namely Yale and Penn.

"If anybody else challenges us for the title, it would be a bit of a surprise — the three of us [Yale, Penn, and Princeton] are the typical powerhouses, though anything can happen," Milam said. "Columbia won two years ago and still has a few good players."

Results from this year show that competition between Princeton and Penn will be particularly intense. The two teams have battled fiercely, trading wins and losses back and forth during recent tournaments. While the Tigers won the October 15 Stabler tournament over the second place Quakers, Princeton placed sixth below Penn's fifth at the Georgetown Invitational October 30. At last weekend's Princeton Invitational, Princeton placed third above Penn, which finished in fourth place.

In addition to strong competition, the Metedeconk National Golf Course in Jackson, N.J., also may prove somewhat of a challenge.

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"It's a tough golf course, one of the top rated courses in the state," Milam said.

The format of the tournament will also challenge the players.

"It is a tough test of golf, 36 holes the first day and then 18 the second day," freshman Greg Johnson said.

In spite of recent performances that the Tigers believe are not up the their full potential, Princeton aims to gear up for the Ivy League championship.

"The Ivy League Championship is our biggest tournament of the year, and that's when we need it all to come together," Hoopes said.