The USM golf team practices at Sable Oaks Golf Club in South Portland which is one of the most difficult courses in the state, but that didn’t prepare them for what they faced at Penobscot Valley Country Club in Orono on Tuesday afternoon.
The Huskies encountered speedy greens and an unfamiliarity of the course to take third place at the Husson University Invitational with a total score of 336.
“They double cut and rolled the greens which made it extremely difficult for us to get our putting going,” USM captain Cody Berkowitz (Saco) said. “It was hard for everyone to get used to. The greens were similar to what you would see at an amateur event.”
Husson took advantage of knowledge of their home course as their Gold Team took first place in the tournament with a total score of 310, followed by the University of Maine Farmington with a score of 323, USM with 336, and Husson’s Green Team with a score of 369.
The Eagles received strong performances from their veterans as they were led by junior Chris Hamel and senior Mike Hersey who each shot a two-over 74 on the 6,442 yard par-72 course. UMF’s Nick Waltz turned in a solid round of 77, and Husson’s Brian Johnson and USM’s Aidan Boyce (South Portland) each shot a 78. UMF’s Orion Chocrane finished out the top scorers as he recorded a 79.
Hamel and Hersey were tied after 18 holes, which forced a playoff between the two teammates for medalist honors. Hamel proceeded to edge Hersey as he birdied the first playoff hole to become the medalist at the annual invitational tournament.
“We didn’t play up to our potential,” USM sophomore Josh Hogan (Falmouth),who shot a respectable score of 80, said. “Most of us had never played the course before so we were unfamiliar on where to hit it around the green. You would hit it pin-high, and it would spin right back off.”
Hogan, who played in the Maine Amateur Championship at Bar Harbor’s Kebo Valley Golf Club, also mentioned that the greens at Penobscot Valley reminded him of greens he faced at the amateur tournament.
Boyce, a freshman from South Portland, led the Huskies, placing fifth overall in the tournament. He has proven himself showing tremendous confidence as one of the team’s go-to players early this season along with Hogan. Hogan and Boyce were the first and second scorers, respectively, in a match against St. Joe’s at Sable Oaks on Sept. 1, turning in scores of 74 and 75, with Hogan shooting an impressive 35 on the front nine. The two give the USM golf program an apparent bright future.
“Aidan [Boyce] is performing extremely well right now,” Berkowitz said. “He shows a lot of dedication and has a great love for the game, and if a few putts dropped here and there he would’ve been medalist.”
Although the Huskies had a rough showing at Penobscot Valley they are confident that they can get back on track soon and play at the skill level they played at on Sept. 1 against St. Joe’s.
“We’re putting this match behind us,” Berkowitz said. “I think we’ll start performing the way we know how to, and with hard work in the next week and the right mind set we’ll hopefully make our presence known.”
“Golf can have negative momentum sometimes. If you’re playing well you don’t notice those things such as the green speed or other factors, but when you’re playing bad everything seems to go wrong,” USM head coach Reggie Grant said. “I told the guys after the match on Tuesday to forget about it because that’s not who we are and how we play. We have some good young players and I think we’ll start playing up to our full potential soon.”