For the second straight week, Rhode Island won the tournament with a team score of 286-302-588, 15 shots better than the nearest competitor, Sacred Heart. Ben Spitz from Rhode Island took home the individual honors, as he shot 69-74-143, which was 1-under par. Spitz recorded the only score under par for the tournament.
Leading the charge for the Big Green was Jamie Wallace '08 who fired 71-77-148, putting him in a tie for fifth place. Wallace was followed closely by Matt Uretsky '07 who shot 71-79-150 for a four-way tie in 11th.
Dave Putney '10 shot 80-78-158 to tie for 56th, and Rob Henley '09 shot 85-79-164 to finish tied for 104th place to complete the scoring for Dartmouth.
Men's golf coach Rich Parker was pleased with his team's performance over the weekend, although he would have liked to see some additional shots shaved off.
"Jamie and Matt played really well for us, especially on the first day, when they were both one under par," he said. "They gave away a couple of shots on the second day, but they played very well on the whole. Overall, it was a solid performance for the team, because we beat everyone we were supposed to, but it was nothing spectacular because we didn't beat anyone that was better than us."
The members of the team echoed their coach's comments, as the golfers saw room for improvement.
"Overall, this was a better finish for the team. However, we still did not play up to our potential," Wallace said. "Last year in this tournament we were second alone; this year we tied for sixth."
The team had hoped to finish in the top five, but they fell just short, leaving some taste of bitterness in their mouths.
"Jamie and I had solid first rounds, but we both struggled on Sunday, me especially," Uretsky said. "As a team though, the performance was again somewhat disappointing."
Weather has not been friendly to the squad this year, but the conditions were relatively good for this tournament. The temperatures were a little cold and the large field slowed down the pace of play, making it difficult to establish a rhythm.
"The course was in decent shape, and the wind was up," Uretsky said. "Rounds were slow because of the huge field. These courses always play tough at the end of October."
Accuracy was critical during the tournament due to the narrow fairways. "The fairways were all tree-lined, so there was a premium placed on accurate driving," said Wallace.
Saving par after hitting inaccurate tee shots was not an easy task in this tournament. "I had a really tough week driving the ball and consistently put myself in places where I needed to hit spectacular shots just to make par," said John Mitchell '08, who in addition to playing golf is also an assistant sports editor of The Dartmouth.
Heading into the spring season, the team hopes to take advantage of scoring opportunities more consistently.
"We give away way too many shots very close to the hole," Parker said. "The guys need to just step up and knock the ball into the hole. The struggles are definitely not a result of the guys not working hard, so hopefully the team will get better."
"I'd like to think we'll come into the spring season ready to establish ourselves as a team to beat in New England," Uretsky said.
The team will next be on the links in the spring, when it gears up for its most important tournament of the year, the Ivy League Championships.
"Our biggest goal in the spring is to do well in our biggest tourney, the Ivy League Championships. Obviously we want to play more solid golf in each tournament, but the spring season is made or broken by the performance in Ivies," Wallace said.
