Marquette men’s golf will cap off its regular season slate of events with the Hawkeye Invitational this weekend, hosted by the University of Iowa. The trip to Iowa City will be the team’s last chance to prepare before the Big East Tournament begins April 26.
“During last week’s tournament, we showed real signs of hitting our stride,” senior Nick Nelson said. “ I think we all saw our strengths at some point, and those strengths are what we need to build upon these next few weeks.”
Last season’s appearance in the Hawkeye Invitational was fairly positive for the Golden Eagles. In the 12-team tournament, Marquette finished in 5th place with a team score of 28-over par. As a group, no player finished worse than 40th in the 65-player field.
Junior Pat Sanchez led the way with a 5-over par finish, tied for the 16th best score overall. Seniors Brandon Cloete and Nick Nelson and junior Zach Gaugert all finished with total scores 8-over par to 10-over par. Nelson also finished with the best individual round with a 3-under par, a 69 the second round.
Sanchez said he believes last weekend’s tournament helped work out some kinks in the return trip to Iowa City.
“El Marcero Classic was great preparation for this weekend and for the Big East Championship given that we’ve become more and more confortable under pressure and in adverse situations,” Sanchez said. “Also, this event reminded us the importance of managing missed and off days.”
Cloete echoed a similar sentiment.
“It’s another opportunity for us to go out and put the preparation to work in a pressure situation,” Clote said. “Because when it comes down to that final Sunday at the Big East, we want to know exactly what we can count on when we really need it, and nothing prepares you better than putting ourselves in those tough situations.”
After the tournament, Marquette will get ready for the Big East Tournament at the Callawassie Island Golf Club in Callawassie Island, S.C. On the same course, Marquette finished in 2nd place last season led by Cloete’s 5-over par.
Cloete feels the team has a lot of confidence coming down the last stretch of the season.
“You know, as a golfer, it’s difficult to be kept indoors all day for practices, what with the winter and all, but these guys take it in their strides like champs,” Clote said. “We know that every day we’ve been out there, we’ve gotten a little better. We added to our foundation brick by brick and so now comes the money-end of the season. The house is built and were ready for the finish.”
