Men's Golf

The University of Minnesota men’s golf team put last year’s disappointments behind them and took second place at the Adams Cup of Newport.
In their second tournament of the season, the Gophers finished 13 shots behind Texas A&M and 20 shots ahead of third place, Francis Marion University. The par-72 tournament was in Newport, R.I., and concluded yesterday.
This finish is better than the sixth place tie earned at the Gopher Invite at Springhill Golf Course earlier in September.

In professional golf tournaments, participants play as individuals; their score is the only one that counts toward their final result.
However, in collegiate golf, things are a little different.
Schools pick five competitors to play as a team, with four of those scores counting toward the team’s final score. The winner is determined by the team with the lowest combined scores, with teams having the ability to also enter golfers in the tournament as individuals.

Throughout the upcoming season, some Minnesota men’s golfers might come down sick.
That is, with a case of homesickness.

“I think every single player that’s come here at one point has that moment where they’re thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, where am I, what am I doing, I want to go home,’ ” associate head coach Andrew Tank said.

With six of the 15 players from other countries, players will likely miss the comforts of home. However, having multiple international players on the team creates a support system.

After a four month hiatus from competitive golf, the Minnesota men's golf team is set for its spring debut.

The Gophers open their season today in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico at the NCAA Shootout. The three-round tournament is hosted by Purdue University at the Rio Mar Country Club.

The 15-team field at the tournament is NCAA Championship quality, with 13 teams ranked in Golfweek's Top 50, including the top two respectively, Georgia and Alabama.

The chance to play against such tough competition is a welcome challenge for the team, however.

It wasn't such a sunny result for the Minnesota men's golf team this weekend down in Puerto Rico.

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what: Golf

when: All day, Friday through Sunday
where: Las Vegas

The Minnesota men's golf team probably didn't arrive in Las Vegas expecting the course it was playing to have greens that rivaled the U.S. Open in terms of speed.

But that's what the Gophers got and it took them awhile to adjust.

"As coaches, we didn't do a good job preparing our kids for the speed of the greens," director of golf Brad James said.

The Minnesota women's golf team's schedule didn't really allow it a spring break, but considering the results, the Gophers probably didn't mind too much.

Minnesota recorded its first tournament win since October 2006 with a three-day total of 954 at the Diablo Grande Invitational in Patterson, Calif.

The victory came just a week after the Gophers set a new 54-hole school scoring record, ousting a total that had stood since 1985.

Minnesota managed to build on the momentum gained in Rio Verde with three top-5 individual finishes.

Golf legend Ben Hogan is regarded almost unanimously as the greatest ball striker of all time.

Tiger Woods, currently No. 1 in the world and arguably the best golfer of all time, was quoted in Golf Digest as saying he hopes to someday "own his swing" the way Hogan did.

Anyone who's seen Hogan swing a club has probably noticed how easy he made the game of golf look.

So it seems odd that Hogan would say this: "Reverse every natural instinct and do the opposite of what you are inclined to do, and you will probably come very close to having a perfect golf swing."

It may be only a month into its spring season, but the Minnesota men's golf team is already halfway to NCAA Regional play, and now is the time for the Gophers to step up their play.

Minnesota begins its second straight tournament in Georgia today at the Administaff Augusta State Invitational, a 54-hole event hosted by Augusta State runs through Sunday at the Champions Retreat Golf Club.