Men’s golf to start season at Louisiana tournament
- Mar. 5, 2012
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Kansas men’s golf starts its 2012 season at the Louisiana Classics at Oakbourne Country Club in Lafayette, La., Monday, March 5 and Tuesday, March 6.
This season’s opening tournament marks the latest opener since 1999. Head coach Kit Grove hopes the extra practice will help the team start strong.
Coach Grove used the additional practice time and mild winter weather to put University golfers in as many on-course, high-pressure situations as possible. The team also played against each other in two qualifying tournaments. The qualifiers increased competition with two 81-hole qualifiers and a 63-hole qualifier.
The winners of the two tournaments earned immediate invites to play in this week’s tournament. Coaches chose the final two spots on the team based on performance in the qualifiers.
Doug Quinones, Chris Gilbert, Alex Gutesha, Paul Harris and Dylan McClure will represent the Jayhawks this week. Gilbert led the team last fall with a 72.79 scoring average. Gutesha wasn’t far behind at 73.57. Quinones shot the team’s best score in the fall and ended with a 74.36 stroke average.
Gilbert and Gutesha, both juniors, and Quinones, a senior, are a consistent top of the lineup. For Kansas, the consistency of the No. 4 and No. 5 players in the lineup is key. McClure, a freshman, averaged 75.55 strokes in the fall, and Central Alabama Community College transfer, Paul Harris, averaged 76.07.
The Louisiana Classics features a solid early-season field. The Jayhawks are one of 15 teams competing, including No. 16 LSU, No. 20 Kent State, Illinois, Memphis and SMU— all who are receiving votes in Golf Coaches Association of America polls.
The Louisiana Classics starts a stretch of seven tournaments in nine weeks. After the Louisiana Classics, the team will travel to the Border Olympics in Laredo, Texas, at Laredo Country Club on March 16-17.
Edited by Christine Curtin
