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Greensboro. N.C.
lensen's low-scoring golf teams have high expectations
arim Ali
Staff Writer
Two Ail-Americans. One 2004
Delaware State Amateur
Champion. One seven-time ODAC
Coach of the Year. Ten returning letter
winners. Two promising newcomers.
One team. One goal: the NCAA
Division 111 national championship.
Last year's win gave Guilford a
league-record five-straight Old
Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC)
championship titles.
All the players from last year's team
have returned for another season.
First-year Stephen Walton, who ranked
in the top 32 of the 2003 United States
Junior Amateur Tournament, and soph-
/WW UILFORD.EDU
Junior Chris Lowman's score of 162
helped the Quakers tie for 12th place at
Johnny Palmer/Uwharrie Point
Invitational on Sept. 21
omore transfer Blake Wagner add to
the depth of the team.
Five players represent Guilford in
most tournaments and shoot for the
lowest score. Team score is the total of
the top four individual scores and the
team with the lowest combined score
wins.
Sports Information Director Dave
Walters said that the golf team has just
finished a challenging qualifying sea
son and determined the top players for
the fall.
"The competitive qualifying rounds
demonstrated the overall depth of the
team," Walters said.
"Fall qualifying scores have been the
lowest in the history of Guilford," said
Coach Jack Jensen. "I expect this to
be one of the five best teams we've
ever had."
Twelve players made the team, while
Franco Salmina, Charles Dean and
Matt Nelson could not play due to limit
ed resources at the practice venue.
Guilford players practice free of charge
at The Cardinal, a private golf course.
As a business, it must set limits to its
generosity.
"One of the reason we have had
really outstanding teams is our relation
ship with the Cardinal," said Jensen. "It
is a real blessing. That course is the
real reason that we have done so well."
Four former Cardinal Presidents
have been Guilford alums.
A wonderful facility, however, is not a
universal remedy. For Jensen
there are problems - trying to keep
all the players happy, as the top
five play in a higher percentage of
matches.
The five lowest-scoring players
made the 'A' team. The next group
of five players made the 'B' team,
similar to a junior varsity team.
Based on player performances,
rankings can change as the sea
son progresses.
However, when all the players
are shooting low scores, there
remains only a subtle distinction
between teams 'A' and 'B*.
Wagner pointed out, "The top
nine all average within three
strokes of each other."
Walton agreed. "We have a lot
of potential. At any day we could
go out and compete with each
other," he said.
"It's a strong line-up," said
Jensen. "Every one of these guys
is capable of being a number one
player. And that tells us that we
have a really strong team. There
are no number four's and five's."
Walters said that the Guilford 'B'
team defeated mostly
Division II teams as it won
the Billy Joe Patton
Intercollegiate men's golf
tournament Sept. 14
Walton finished third,
Wagner placed fifth, and
junior Jeff Osberg barely
missed all-tourney honors
by placing sixth.
'A'-team veterans senior
Dave Patterson, who is a
three-time All-American,
and junior Chris Lowman
embrace the concept of a
'B' team. They believe that
it is a great way, especially
for players new to college
golf, to gain experience.
SPORTS
"It sort of takes the pressure off of
me. Let's say if I get hurt or something,
I know a guy on the 'B' team can come
in and play just as well if not better,"
said Patterson, who will play number
two.
Rankings in golf are based on play
ers' abilities and serve a purpose simi
lar to that of batting lineups in baseball.
Jensen is excited at the return of
Patterson, who did not play last year, to
what was already a good team. A
three-year veteran, Patterson shares a
school record 18-Hole Score-66, with
Bill Brooks and Keith King 'BS. With his
experience, Patterson hopes to lead
the team.
The team's depth testifies to
Jensen's recruiting abilities.
"Recruiting is important. If you don't
have good players, you're not going to
have a good team," said Jensen.
"Coaches can only do so much. I have
never taught a kid how to play golf. It's
all recruiting."
"Once your program gets to have a
reputation, good players contact you,
sometimes before you contact them,"
said Jensen.
In his 29th season with the college's
golf team, Jensen is a former Guilford
basketball coach. Under his guidance,
the golf team has had 23 visits to
national tournaments in 28 years and
earned the National Association of
Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA)
Championship in 'BB-89 and the
National Collegiate Athletics
Association (NCAA) Division 111
Championship in 'Ol-02.
During Jensen's tenure, Guilford has
also had four runner-up finishes in
nationwide championships and a total
of 15 ODAC championship titles.
Jensen admitted to playing favorites.
His favorites make the team. "Do you
know who my favorites are?" he asked.
"Guys who shoot the lowest scores."
Lowman shares the team spirit,
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Returning senior Dave Patterson is
confident in the abilities of both golf
teams
which describes the team even in a
competitive atmosphere. "I just want to
get there as a team. It's so much better
to do better as a team than as an indi
vidual in college golf," he said.
Jensen placed the team's strengths
in perspective, explaining that the num
bers ten and eleven players on this
year's roster have played at two and
three in years past. "It's exciting. The
players all know that they are going to
be good," said Jensen.
"Coaches don't talk like this.
Normally, we down-play to avoid
expectations. I know we're good. If we
don't play up to it, I will be very disap
pointed," he said.
With spirits high, talent abounding,
and the team practicing harder than
ever, Guilford has a legitimate chance
of repeating the 'Ol-02 NCAA Division
111 title-winning performance.
"I just hope we can win it for Jack,"
said Patterson. "Jack has done so
much for me. That's my main goal, to
win one for him."
The 'A' team opens its season Sept.
20-21 at the Johnny Palmer/Uwharrie
Point Invitational at Badin Lake, NC.3€