On Saturday, the Dartmouth team shot a combined 324 in the first round, ending the day ranking 14th. The next day, Dartmouth improved its score by twelve strokes, shooting a 312 and bumping up a spot to take 13th place in the invitational with a 636 total score. The team fields five players, and the lowest individual score in each round is dropped from the final tally.
"We wanted to start the season off well. We didn't do that," co-captain Matt Uretsky '07 said of the team's performance. "It was pretty disappointing, though we did see some flashes of brilliance. Our score on Saturday was unbelievably, way worse than we expected. On Sunday we got better performances from Rob [Henley '09] and Jamie [Wallace '08]."
Individually, Uretsky led the team shooting a 77 on Saturday and an 80 on Sunday. Wallace shot an 81 and a 77; Steven Reyes '07 shot a 79 and an 80; Henley shot an 89 and a 75; and Dave Putney '10 shot an 87 and an 83.
The cold start to this spring had left the course in a rough state. Though not snow-covered like the Hanover Country Club, the playing conditions at the Yale Golf Club were far from ideal, much to the dismay of the Big Green golfers.
"The course was in horrendous shape. It just wasn't very much fun," Uretsky said. "It was one of the most frustrating weekends of my life."
The weekend's weather conditions did little to help the experience; players had to contend with cold temperatures and wind, and even some snow flurries.
The weekend was not without its bright spots. Zach Napier '10, who competed individually, had his best performance of his rookie campaign, notching a combined score of 186. Henley overcame a poor first round on Saturday to shoot a team-best 75 the following day.
The University of Hartford and Jones and Wales University in Florida tied for the best score at the invitational, both shooting a 597 over the two rounds. A playoff normally would have ensued, but the Jones and Wales team had left before the competition concluded. The Hartford team was consequently named the tournament's winner.
A highlight of the weekend, as far as the Big Green was concerned, was witnessing Harvard disintegrate in the second round. Leading after round one with a score of 294, Harvard followed up on Sunday shooting eighteen strokes worse to fall to sixth place.
Host Yale placed third at the tournament, while other Ivies Brown and Cornell finished fourth and ninth, respectively. MIT rounded out the bottom with a 698, 138 above par, but still well below the team's average SAT math score.
Traditionally, Dartmouth plays the Yale course twice a year, once in the fall and once again in the spring. This weekend was one of the team's poorer performances at the course in recent history. The course has not left the best impression on all of Dartmouth's golfers.
"For me, I'm just happy I don't have to play this course again," Uretsky said. "I feel bad for all of the younger players. I really don't like Yale Golf Club."
Before Spring term began in Hanover, the Dartmouth golf team prepared for the spring season with a trip that took the athletes to various courses in California, including ones at Pebble Beach and Palm Springs, likely a stark contrast to this past weekend's terrain.
"The team had an awesome time," Uretsky said. "We played at some of the best courses around."
The team continues its spring season with the New England Championship on April 14 and 15, which will be played in Providence, R.I. Dartmouth has scheduled four tournaments for the spring season, all to occur on successive weekends.
"We are looking forward to next weekend," Uretsky said. "We need to stay in the golfing mindset."
