Propelled by an excellent second-place performance from John Lazor ‘19, the men’s golf team won the two-day Quechee Club Collegiate Challenge in Vermont over 11 other competing teams. After a last-place finish at twelfth in the Fighting Irish Golf Classic a week earlier, the team regrouped to score a collective two-over par (578), successfully holding off second-place University of Rhode Island by four strokes and third-place Harvard University by five strokes.
“In my 11 years, it was probably the second biggest tournament we’ve won,” head coach Rich Parker said. “We hung tough, and it was definitely a nail-biter.It was a great experience for our kids, and they played well down the stretch. Over the weekend, I think we learned a lot of lessons.”
Parker said that this is the second-largest tournament the team has won in his 11 years as coach.
On the first day of the competition, Lazor sat atop the leaderboard of 77 competitors with a five-under 67, while Scott Jaster ’17 shot a one-under 71 and tied for sixth. Ian Kelsey ’18 shot a one-over 73 and Charles Cai ’16 shot a two-over 74 to add to the team’s total score of 285. This placed the Big Green in first place with a comfortable lead over the University of Rhode Island by 13 strokes and over Harvard by five strokes.
The second day of the tournament was about maintaining the lead and persevering through pressure, Parker said.
“In my mind, it was going to be us or Harvard,” Parker said. “I told my kids to hang in tough out there, play through it and play smart. It was intense out there. It was great watching the kids handle the pressure.”
Despite an unexpected day-two surge by the Rams led by Mackenzie Denver’s five-under 67, the Big Green held on to win the competition.
Parker reminded Lazor, the last golfer on the course, to finish consistently and try to par out, Lazor said.
“I ended up making a birdie on 17 and then parred 18, which I think really put the dagger in the heart,” Lazor said.
Cai commended Lazor for his performance closing out the tournament.
“With the lead, it’s not easy,” Cai said. “He showed a lot of poise and composure out there. He’s been very impressive.”
Lazor was one of four golfers over the weekend to finish under par with a four-under 140, finishing in second place behind Rhode Island’s Billy Walthouse. Kelsey finished in a tie for fifth with an even par of 144, Jaster tied for eighth with a 1435 and Cai finished with a 149 to tie for 14th.
Lazor described the victory as a “huge win for the team coming home after finishing in last place at Notre Dame [University].”
The Big Green’s B-team also had a strong showing in the tournament, finishing in a solid tie for sixth place with Fordham University. The team impressed by finishing higher than last year’s Ivy League Golf Championship winner, the University of Pennsylvania. Dylan Rusk ‘16 led the charge, tying Jaster in eighth place with a 145.
“That really is another confidence booster for us going into the rest of the season, knowing that we have 10, 11 guys who can play really solid golf,” Lazor said.
Despite the difficulties of the rugged course, the golfers took advantage of the sunny conditions during the weekend competition.
The team looks to continue building off their strong start to the season. One potential area of improvement pinpointed by both Parker and Lazor is the team’s short iron play, specifically from 100 yards and in.
Already in the young season, the Big Green has shown marked improvement, Parker said.
“The golf team has really come along nicely this year as a group,” Parker said. “We have a core of kids that is really a great start to what we want to do here at Dartmouth. We just gotta keep working hard and pushing forward.”
The team will travel to New Haven for Yale University’s Macdonald Cup over the next weekend. The tournament will feature many Ivy League teams and other strong teams, providing an indicator of where the men’s golf team currently stands. Despite the challenge looming ahead, the team is excited for the opportunity.
“The win at Quechee gave us confidence,” Cai said. “We know that if we play well, we can compete with anybody.”
