Will Hermens
The men’s golf team won the Northwest Conference Championships by nine strokes at the Tokatee Golf Club on April 26. The win advanced the team to the NCAA national championship tournament in Port St.Louis, Fla.
“Our team feels really excited going into the national championship,” junior Tyler Nelson said. “Winning our conference title for the second year in a row is a huge accomplishment for our team.”
Nelson shot a 150 for the two-day tournament, placing second in a three-way tie.
“All of us feel that we haven’t played our best golf yet,” Nelson said.
Senior Andrew Fitch and sophomore Yutaro Sakamotoa both shot 151 for the tournament ending in a three-way tie for fifth place with Pacific Lutheran University’s Jason Casey.
“It was nice to get in the top five again, but gaining individual honors doesn’t mean anything if the team doesn’t win,” senior Andrew Fitch said.
With their top-five finishes, Fitch, Nelson and Sakamotoa were named to the all-NWC team.
“Being named all-NWC for the third year in a row is a great feeling, knowing that all of my hard work has paid off during the course of the year,” Nelson said. “I would trade in all three of my all-NWC awards in order to win a team award, preferably a national championship. Without this special group of guys, I wouldn’t have found myself in this situation.”
The ’Cats are excited about traveling to the national championships.
“I love going to new places, and it just so happens that I have never been to Florida,” Nelson said. “When I finally reach my destination, I feel really good in knowing that the next few days I only have to worry about playing good golf.”
The national tournament will be hosted by the PGA Village, which is ranked No. 30 in GolfWorld’s “Reader’s Choice Award Top 50 Golf Courses.”
“Playing at the PGA Village in Florida is going to be a really cool experience for all of us,” Nelson said.
The tournament will be held at all three PGA Village courses. According to PGAvillage.com, the Dye, Ryder and Wanamaker courses offer different feels in regards to layout and atmosphere.
“It’s going to be tough getting acclimated with the courses; the greens are Bermuda grass,” Nelson said. “Bermuda is tricky because it involves reading the slope and grain of the green. Here in Oregon, all we have to worry about is the slope as a lot of the greens are Poa Anna.”
The Wildcats look forward to the perks of playing in such a prestigious event.
“When we played last year, we all really felt a little bit spoiled. For the first time all year we got a little bit of a preview of what it felt like to play on a big stage,” Nelson said.
The ’Cats are anticipating above-average treatment during the nationals as they recall last year’s tournament.
“The tournament posts a sign on the range that lets everyone know where we are from,” Nelson said. “The tournament also utilizes live scoring over the Internet, which is useful to everyone that is following us. We also always know how we are doing because they have leader boards every third hole.”
Although the Wildcats go to Florida with a goal, they intend to enjoy the trip.
“I believe that you can’t win unless you have fun,” Nelson said. “Clearly the purpose of the trip is to win a golf tournament, but once we get off the course, I think we all understand that we need to unwind and relax.”
Nelson is excited about the time with his teammates.
“I have strong bonds with a lot of my teammates and getting to share an experience like this is going to be awesome,” he said.
The Wildcats expect to make great memories during the tournament.
“Any time you can compete in a NCAA championship in any sport there will be great and lasting memories,” Andrew Fitch said.
The tournament takes place May 13-16 at the PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, Fla.