Men's golf team expects wins from here on out

The men's golf team will travel to Annapolis, Md. this weekend for two days on the links in the Navy Spring Invitational. Although wet weather on the East Coast may prevent the US Naval Academy golf course from being in prime shape, the team looks to find its 'A' game as it prepares for next weekend's Princeton Invitational and the upcoming post-season tournaments.

The list of opponents is a long one for Princeton, as the team will face 12 other squads in all, including Georgetown, Villanova and host Navy. The Tigers' expectations are high, and they will settle for nothing less than first place, especially after a somewhat disappointing second-place finish in last weekend's George Washington Golf Invitational.

Sophomore Jason Gerken made a run at top honors in Princeton's meet last weekend, eventually settling for a fifth-place finish with a four-over-par total of 148. He was in contention after the first round, in which he shot a one-under 71 on the par-72 course, but was unable to keep up the momentum in the second 18, in which he carded a 77. He ended up 10 shots back of the individual medalist from Lehigh, who tore up the course with a six-under-par 138.

Gerken could hardly be called the team's standout, however, as he had several teammates come in right behind him. To his 148 total, sophomore John Locke and freshman John Sawin added a 149 and 150, respectively. Those scores were good enough for ties for 10th and 11th place. Senior Greg Johnson and sophomore Jesse Dixon came in with 152 and 154, respectively, to close out the scoring for Princeton.

The previous meet was a little disappointing for the Tigers, as they had made it an explicit goal to win the tournament. They left themselves in good position after the first 18, but were unable to improve on their first day total of 299, and came in with a 300. Princeton was the only team in the top four that didn't knock of some strokes in the final 18.

This may have been the result of changing course lengths in the second round. As is common in the final round of tournaments, the tees were moved back to increase the difficulty of the course for the final round of play.

The Tigers played well in Annapolis last year, shooting a team score of 600, which was good enough for second place, only seven shots from winner Georgetown. In fact, the individual medalist last year was Princeton's Nat Hoopes '03.

As is true in golf at every level, the weather will factor in significantly to the play this weekend. The forecast calls for overcast skies throughout and rain on Sunday, and of course, wind.

Poor conditions tend to separate the field, as the better players are less likely to be affected than the less skilled ones. Hopefully this will be an advantage for a deep Princeton team.

The Naval Academy Golf Course is a par-71 venue, playing just over 6600 yards from the tips. This is relatively short compared to many newly-designed courses, which at their longest can frequently stretch well over 7200 yards. The course is defended by numerous bunkers that surround small, fast greens. Proper club selection will be essential for a low score, as players will face many uphill shots into these greens. The greens may be affected by the rainy weather, which could cause them to lose some of their speed. Toss in some wind that is the norm for this time of year and some questionable lies in the early-spring rough, and scores could be a little higher than normal, despite the short course.