A seven-stroke team improvement proved to be inconsequential in the final standings for the Utah golf team at the Fresno Lexus Golf Classic last weekend.
Following a disappointing second-to-last place finish in the season-opening meet, golf coach Wayne Fisher was eager to see the response of his squad.
The underclassmen heard the call, but the cry to the upperclassmen was unheeded.
Freshman Ashdon Woods was most impressive in his first collegiate golf meet. In his opening round of play, the newcomer shot an even-par 72. The effort was the first par or better round for the Utes in two meets this season. The Lauder, Wyo., native finished with scores of 75 and 80 to record a team best +11 (227).
?It was a big confidence booster to do so well in my first meet,? said the freshman. ?My execution was good, I wasn?t hitting it bad at all.?
Sophomores Nick Summers (+12) and Luke Swilor (+15) each shaved strokes from their previous tournament scores tallied Sept. 21 and 22.
However, the trio of upperclassmen disappointed. Senior leader Paul Winterowd, who shot a team-high +13 in the opener, nearly doubled that total in shooting a +25 (241).
Senior Jason Shepherd fell a stroke to +19 and junior Bruce Summerhays dropped three shots to +21.
Overall, the Utes shot a 915 (+51) team score, finishing last in the field of 16 teams and 81 shots behind tourney winner Fresno State.
The Utes? nearest competitor was Idaho, which was nine better than the Utes with a team score of +42.
Host Fresno State ran away with the crown, firing an 834 ( 30). Stanford, Nevada and Pacific all tied for second place, but their collective scores of 874 (+10) clearly were not in the same area code as the Bulldogs.
However, the Utes did improve. Utah finished seven strokes better than their 922 (+58) in the opening meet in New Mexico.
Utah returns to the course for collegiate golf Oct. 15 and 16 at the Countrywide Invitational in Northridge, Calif.