The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men’s fall golf season began as a collection of newcomers and two guys with three years of combined experience.
Two months and five tournaments later, coach Mark Guhne has molded the Mocs into an improving team.
“I think the fall season went really well and I’m happy that it was so solid,” captain Stephan Jaeger said. “It’s not like we jumped through the roof, but we did fairly well and we nearly always were in the top half of the field.”
They’re not the No. 1 team in the country like a set of past Mocs. But this team doesn’t have an All-American like Jonathan Hodge or a stalwart like Derek Rende – at least not yet.
It’s comprised of junior Jaeger, sophomore Steven Fox and three freshmen who emerged from the nest faster than the others.
“This fall was a lot of fun,” Guhne said. “I think our freshmen may be one of the top five freshman classes in the country, and they’re going to be really good. Fox and Jaeger did a good job of leading the team as the ‘old guys.’
“I’m very happy with the fall.”
The Mocs finished third this past weekend in a three-day tournament where they beat the likes of Wake Forest, Michigan, Tennessee and East Tennessee State. They shot even-par, their best combined score of the season.
“Being and young and making some freshman mistakes didn’t allow us to finish as well as we’re capable throughout the fall season,” Guhne said. “As they learn, grow and get older, they’ll continue to correct that and we’ll continue to get stronger.”
Freshmen Davis Bunn, Chris Robb and Benni Weilguni separated themselves from the other freshmen. Robb won the Springhill Suites Collegiate – his second college tournament – last month.
“I think the success our team has had in the past helped because the guys weren’t so intimidated as freshmen,” Guhne said. “They had to figure out that college golf is different, but they weren’t intimidated.”
The Mocs will take nearly five months away from tournament competition, but they’re not putting their clubs in storage. The plan for this winter offseason is to improve wedge work and short-game skills, increase strength and expand on their endurance.
“I knew what the freshmen were capable of doing, but I didn’t know if they’d put in the work and live up to expectations,” Fox said. “Now that I’ve seen them, I’m very comfortable with them. We could have a great spring season.”