Both the men’s and women’s golf teams at Baker University are hoping the winter weather is behind us as they prepare for another season.
The golf team is unique in that, unlike many sports, it has a fall season as well as a spring season.
“On average we play in four or five two-day tournaments in the fall and four or five two-day tournaments in the spring,” coach Karen Exon said.
Practice for the teams’ spring season began this week.
“The weather has been a little cool, crisp and kind of damp, so it’s not exactly going to be pleasant weather to practice, but you can’t always pick the weather when we play so we might as well practice the way we play sometimes,” Exon said.
This past fall the women’s team found success as the runner-up team in the Heart of America Athletic Conference and the third-place team in regionals. The men’s team was right behind the women placing fourth in the conference tournament and qualifying for regionals, where the Wildcats finished fourth out of 13 teams.
Exon said she hoped to find the same success on the course as well as off in the upcoming spring season.
“Our goals are the same – qualifying for nationals and playing well there,” Exon said.
The athletes agree that hard work in practice will be key to reaching their goals this season.
“We need to lower our team score a bit, but I think we can do it,” sophomore Melissa Brown said.
Freshman Zack Rockey said having a strong team and playing for one another should be the focus this season.
“We have great team chemistry; we will just have to come together at the right time in conference and regionals and do what we know we can do,” he said.
Exon said the secret to success would be getting her athletes to focus solely on the course.
“I like to tell my kids, ‘Don’t get too caught up in what someone else is doing in your group because you can’t do anything to affect their play.'”