Anna Hartig
Staff Writer
The College of Wooster women’s and men’s golf teams earned second place in competitive tournaments this past weekend. The men’s team hosted the Nye Intercollegiate tournament at the par-72, 6,545-yard Wooster Country Club while the women competed in the Wooster Spring Invitational at the par-72, 5,803-yard Mohican Hills Golf Club in Jeromesville, Ohio. Unfortunately, bad weather prevented both teams from completing their tournament.
On the men’s side, Jimmy Hinton ’21 along with four other teammates scored in the ’70s during Saturday’s round. The Fighting Scots were able to score their second-lowest round of the year, which places the team in contention to be the clubhouse leader-turned-tournament winner even though weather prevented the completion of the tournament. Hinton had a very successful first round with a birdie on the 491-yard first hole and continued on to do the same in holes six, seven and eight. Teammate Colin O’Hern ’21 was 2-over par 74 to finish in a three-way tie for fourth place. Overall, Wooster turned in a strong 301 to finish second out of ten competing teams.
Ryan Shaw ’20 said, “I think the event itself motivates our team moving forward. We feel like we were robbed of a win because our second round got canceled due to the excessive amount of rain. We would have been only one shot back heading into the final round, and we could have definitely gotten the win, especially being that the event was on our home course.”
On the women’s side, the team turned in 335 on Saturday to earn second place out of twelve teams in the Spring Invitational. TongTong Wu ’21 shot an 81 for the third consecutive round for the women’s golf team this season. Wu tied for third-place with a birdie on the par-4, 479 yard second hole along with birdies on the sixth and fifteenth holes. Teammates Hannah Appleman ’20 and Megan Gronau ’21 shot an 84 in order to help the Fighting Scots succeed.
While Denison University was able to pull through with a win this past weekend, the team’s goal is to beat Denison in upcoming tournaments.
“We practice every day with specific goals and work on our strengths and weaknesses strategically. We are a supportive team by embracing differences and collaborating with each other,” Wu said.
Both the men’s and women’s teams are looking to use these last few tournaments to prepare for the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Championships later this April. The Championships will be a three-day tournament hosted in Mansfield, Ohio. Both teams are tackling the tournament with a positive attitude and coming together as a team.
“We have gained more confidence and we have faith in achieving more,” Wu said.
The Fighting Scots tackle their next opponents this weekend on April 21-22. The women’s team travels to the Franklin College Spring Invitational for the two-day tournament at the Legends Golf Club. The men’s team competes in the Defiance College Spring Invitational that same weekend, hosted at the Eagle Rock Golf Club.