University of Houston Athletics
Golf Wraps up Regular Season at Jim West Intercollegiate
4/9/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
April 9, 2011
VICTORIA, Texas - The University of Houston golf team wraps up the regular season this weekend when it competes at the Jim West Intercollegiate at Victoria Country Club.
The three-day, 54-hole event is slated for Sunday through Tuesday at Victoria Country Club. Tournament plays begins at 8 a.m., Sunday and Monday with an 8:30 a.m., shotgun start slated for Tuesday.
The Cougars will join UT Arlington, UTSA, Stephen F. Austin, Louisiana-Lafayette, College of Charleston, Southeastern Louisiana, South Alabama, Louisiana Tech, McNeese State, Sam Houston State, Cal State Fullerton, Houston Baptist, Houston-Victoria and host Texas State on the 6,870-yard, par-72 course.
"We are trying to build some momentum for the Conference USA Championship," head coach Jonathan Dismuke said. "We have had a long spring. We've improved in areas, but we haven't put a complete event together. As always, our main focus is to keep improving and give ourselves to be competitive."
As the Cougars compete this weekend, Dismuke and assistant coach Chris Hill will be watching the Cougars' start on Sunday closely. The team has posted back-to-back 15th-place finishes, due in part to slow starts.
"The one thing we really have struggled with lately is confidence in the first round. You have to have the proper intensity from the start. You can't wait until you're eight, nine or holes into the tournament before you figure out it's time to play," Dismuke said. "The main thing we are working on now is having the proper intensity level and making sure our preparation before the round is good."
Despite the slow starts, Dismuke said he is not concerned about his team or its ability. With a few tweaks at the start of each day, the Cougars will put themselves into contention in any tournament they play.
"I'm not worried about our ability. We have the capability of shooting some really good rounds," Dismuke said. "The main focus is getting out of the gate and being competitive. If we can get out of our own way in the first round, we will be a pretty good team."
THE LINEUP
The Cougars will use a different lineup for the regular-season finale. Freshmen Bryn Flanagan, Curtis Reed, Jesse Droemer and Wesley McClain will compete. Redshirt junior Eric Adler will replace sophomore Will Dusenbury with sophomore Joseph Reynolds playing as an individual.
Adler and Reynolds will make their season debuts at this weekend's event.
Dusenbury will miss the Jim West Intercollegiate to comply with NCAA rules. Under current regulations, NCAA golfers are allowed only to compete in a specific number of days per semester. While the Cougars played in three fall tournaments, Dusenbury competed in four at Dallas Baptist before transferring to Houston.
This season, Flanagan leads the Cougars with a 73.63 average. Droemer stands second with a 73.83 average and is tied with Reed and McClain for the team lead with 10 rounds of par or better.
Reed and Dusenbury also enjoyed 68s earlier this season, tying for the lowest mark by any Cougar in 2010-11. Flanagan, McClain, sophomore Jordan Rumora and senior Matt Eschenburg enjoyed personal-best season low 69s earlier this season.
LAST TIME OUT
In their most recent event, the Cougars finished 15th at the Insperity Augusta State Invitational. Dusenbury posted a score of 223 to finish in a tie for 45th and lead the Cougars, while Droemer posted the team's lowest round of the event with a 71 in the second round.
UP NEXT
Following the Jim West Intercollegiate, the Cougars will compete at the Conference USA Championships at Texarkana Country Club in Texarkana, Texas on April 24-26.
Players Mentioned
