Team starts season with new coach, young players

By Bill Walberg

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

A word that seems to revolve around this year’s men’s Golf team is “young.” The squad picked up four freshmen, a transfer, and a new coach.

Kit Grove, last year’s assistant coach, replaced mentor and former coach Ross Randall. Grove has his goals set high this year, but doesn’t know how his team will compete this season.

“We’ve got a lot of new blood. It’s a unique experience to have more guys coming in than going out,” Grove said.

The end of last spring started what seems to be a long transition period with the departure of Gary Woodland. Woodland was named to the All-Big 12 Honors list for both his junior and senior seasons. With Woodland gone, the team lacks experience in the NCAA because the Jayhawks return only one senior, Joey Mundy.

Injuries also seem to be a problem for the outlook of the season. Sophomore Patrick Roth was out for three months last season for unknown injuries and Zach Pederson is suffering from back problems.

But injuries aren’t deterring coach Grove’s practice schedule. The Jayhawks start their team qualifiers this weekend, which will allow Grove to understand what each player needs to work on so he can change his practice accordingly. But Grove has a general idea of what they’ll focus on this season.

“I’m going to wear these guys out on the short game. It will make good days better and bad days better. It will turn 76’s into 73’s, which could be the difference for making Regionals or Nationals,” Grove said.

Grove also noted that he’ll be a little more intense than Coach Randall, especially in regards to the wedge game.

SEASON

The schedule for the season looks to be an enjoyable one for the Jayhawks. The golf squad will start the season at Poppy Hills Golf Club located in Pebble Beach, Calif., for the St. Mary’s Invitational on Sept. 10. Other highlights for the season will include a trip to Kona, Hawaii, to start of the spring season in February.

Unfortunately the locations are the only thing pretty about the Jayhawks’ schedule. The team will only be making one home appearance this season, at the University of Kansas Invitational in September.

Aside from the rigorous travel, the Jayhawks will play for a Big 12 Title alongside eight other NCAA Regional teams from last year’s tournament. With last year’s Big 12 Champion Oklahoma State only returning four of its golfers from last season, Texas A&M is the likely candidate for this season’s best team, returning everyone from last year’s runner-up finish.

Although it is a difficult schedule, Grove is looking forward to seeing the season progress.

“I’m excited to be out there as a coach this season. It’s a great feeling. We’re young so every shot counts and every round counts,” Grove said.

—Edited by Rachael Gray

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