Golf back on familiar green
Senior Sydnee Michaels and the top-seeded Bruins begin the NCAA West Regional today in Palo Alto. Coach Carrie Forsyth said the Bruins’ success will depend on Michaels’ play.
By Steven Breazeale
May 5, 2010 10:15 p.m.
This year the UCLA women’s golf team has had to compete against a brutally tough Pac-10 conference.
On top of that, they have constantly battled a different kind of opposition that does not have a face.
Expectations.
And so far this year the Bruins have not disappointed.
After several tournament wins and a strong second place finish at the Pac-10 Tournament, the Bruins have retained the top spot in their region and earned the No. 1 overall seed as they head into today’s NCAA West Regional tournament.
Luckily for the Bruins and coach Carrie Forsyth, the tournament will be held on a course the team is very familiar with: the Stanford University Golf Course.
Earlier this year the Bruins earned a close second place finish behind Arizona State on this same course and had four of their players finish in the top ten as individuals.
The reason behind the Bruins past success at this seemingly home-away-from-home course is due to their superior ball striking.
“It has holes that are open where you can hit driver, but then there are those where you have to thread your shots,” Forsyth said, “When you stand on a tee, it can look wide but the rough will be grown in. It’s got some tricky greens but it’s really fair.”
The ability to place the ball where they want it on the green has been one of the Bruins strong points in the season. If they can capitalize on their tendency to hit greens and make some putts, they should go low.
Despite all of this talk of familiarity and low scoring, the Bruins’ success this week is certainly not a given, and they will have to rely on key contributions from important players.
One player who has essentially carried the team on her back and is just now getting into top form is sophomore Stephanie Kono. Her recent performances, including an individual win a month ago in Arizona, have her at the top of the Bruin rotation. Kono is capable of going extremely low and has proven to be cool under pressure on Sunday finishes.
But much of the Bruins’ success will hinge on the play of veteran, senior Sydnee Michaels.
“We need Sydnee to play the way she can and post the numbers she is able to. If she can do that, then we got what we need. Its truly going to depend on how she performs this week,” Forsyth said.
If both Kono and Michaels can contribute, the rest of the Bruin rotation will just have to concentrate on playing their game and not giving away any cheap strokes.
The expectations continue to rise.
