Bobcats Look for Come Back After Tough Loss in Florida

By Brandon Bush

New Head Coach Pat Garrett and the Georgia College golf team teed off their 2016 season at the Matlock Collegiate Classic hosted by Florida Southern College on Feb. 9, finishing tied for 14th out of 15 teams in their first competition of the year.

Head coach Pat Garrett credited “brutal conditions” for their high scoring.

“[There were] 34 mph winds, the course was wet and the finish wasn’t what we expect from ourselves,” coach Garrett said. “We finished tied for last place. I hope I never have to say that again.”

The golf team took on two rookies in the offseason, leaving them with a young team with little experience. Garrett said despite the harsh conditions and young squad, the newcomers handled themselves well despite “being thrown in the deep end.”

Despite the disappointing start, the Bobcats have done a lot to prepare themselves for the season, with the older and more experienced players taking advantage of the offseason to improve their abilities.

“I went down to Florida to practice in warmer weather,” senior David Sullivan said. “I also spend about an hour to an hour-and-a-half working on putting. I think that’s the most important part of the game, so when that clicks I’ll be ready.”

Sullivan entered the season as the only senior and the most experienced member of the golf team.

“I know there’s a lot of pressure on me,” Sullivan said. “But I tell people all the time that the world could be falling down around me, and I’m just out here playing golf.”

The Bobcats will return to Florida on Feb. 29 to take part in the South/Southwestern Preview hosted by St. Leo. The tournament will be uncharted waters for many members of the team as they face another rough course.

“I haven’t played this course before,” junior Harrison Stewart said. “It will be a new experience, and we can turn everything around. We have the potential to be good, we just have to go do it.”