The Marquette men’s golf team tallied a dismal overall score of 908 in the Windon Memorial Classic on Sunday and Monday in Glenview, Ill., finishing in last place at 56 over par.
Though the results for the Golden Eagles as a whole were ugly, there were some diamonds in an otherwise rough tournament showing.
Freshman Corey Konieczki had a breakthrough day, turning in a score of 224 and finishing in a tie for 50th place in the individual rankings to lead the team. Senior Kelly Kretz came in a close second for Marquette with a final score of 225 and a tie for 54th place. Kretz started the tournament strong, fell off in the second round, but was able to rebound in the third to finish 12 over par.
“I played two pretty good rounds, but the second round was a disaster,” Kretz said.
Senior Ben Sieg’s tournament story was probably the most intriguing for the team. After a miserable first two rounds, Sieg finished 1 under par in the final round and climbed from 83rd to 69th on the leader board. Sieg felt dissatisfied with the team’s performance, but also maintained a realistic approach to the Classic.
“It was disappointing, but this was one of the stronger courses we will face all year,” Sieg said. “There were a lot of good golfers (in the tournament), including some that will be competing in this year’s Masters Championship.”
Marquette began play on Sunday morning and finished first the round in 16th place.
Kretz led the team with a score of 72 and placed in a tie for 11th.
Konieczki finished the first 18 holes in second place for the team with a 78, in a tie for 61st place.
The second round saw the Golden Eagles drop to 17th with a dismal overall score of 614. Kretz fell all the way to a tie for 74th place with a score of 83, but Konieczki improved to 55th place after shooting an impressive 74.
Marquette completed play in the Classic on a high note in the third round. Sieg and Kretz each closed out the round with tournament-best scores of 70 and shot 1-under-par. Konieczki also turned in a 72 to cap his surprisingly solid performance.
Coach Stephen Bailey remains optimistic about his team, despite its slow start to the season.
“We improved today in the final round,” Bailey said. “It’s good to finish on that note, and hopefully we can carry the positives on to the next tournament, even though we don’t have another one for about four weeks. In no way are we thrilled with the overall last place finish, however.”
The Golden Eagles will have quite a bit of time to improve, as their next tournament will take place on Oct. 25, when the team will travel to Seaside, Calif., for the Saint Mary’s Invitational.
