By Liana B. Baker The Daily Northwestern
Seniors David Merkow and Chris Wilson know their college careers will be over if Northwestern does not post a top-ten finish at the NCAA Central Regional Championships this weekend.
But they are using that knowledge to fire them up for one final push for a national championship.
"For Dave and me, this could be it," Wilson said. "But knowing this is our last chance actually motivates us to go out and keep our season going."
NU, ranked 36th nationally according to Golfweek, is seeded 13th in a field of 27 that features some of the nation's top-ranked teams including No. 3 Lamar, No. 4 Alabama, No. 6 Oklahoma State, No. 14 Texas A&M and No. 18 Louisville.
NU took second place last year in the NCAA regionals, which coach Pat Goss considers one of his team's best achievements.
The 54-hole tournament will be played today through Saturday at Rich Harvest Farms, a private golf course in Sugar Grove, Ill.
Goss said his team is familiar with the course and that most of them played it competitively in the 2003 Western Junior Championship.
Three NU golfers will walk with extra springs in their steps after qualifying this week for the U.S. Open Sectionals. Junior Kyle Moore and seniors Wilson and Merkow all advanced in their local qualifying tournaments, which Goss said will give them added confidence heading into the NCAA Regionals.
"This is further evidence that their games are good and the guys are doing the right things to continually improve," Goss said.
What Wilson wants to improve most about his game is keeping the ball low when hitting in windy conditions. He said "bad tendencies" creep into his swing, which make it hard to control many of his shots.
"It's one of the swing flaws I have," Wilson admitted. "I want to be in control of my golf ball when it's windy out."
To adapt to windy spring and summer conditions, Wilson said he has been practicing a variety of shots and taking an extra club, such as a 5-iron instead of a 6-iron, to keep the ball low.
Junior Dan Doyle said practice has been going "very well" this week and that he is not intimidated by playing with some of the country's best teams.
"The fact they have had success this year means absolutely nothing," Doyle said.
Doyle said the tournament will give the Cats a long-awaited fresh start and hopefully help him forget this season's woes.
Goss also sounded optimistic about his team's chances in the Regionals, but he said he had "given up on prognostication," following repeated poor finishes.
"The results have befuddled me," Goss said about his underachieving team.
The Cats' last finish was eighth out of 11 at the Big Ten Championships April 29th in Columbus, Ohio.
Doyle said his team's attitude remains positive and he is excited to prove NU is an NCAA championship contender.
"We end this year still feeling like we're one of the best team's in the country," Doyle said. "Although we might not show it, we still have a chance to do so."
Reach Liana B. Baker at l-balinsky-baker@northwestern.edu.
Be the first to comment on this article!