The UCLA men’s golf team took a step back in its most recent fall competition.
After two consecutive third-place finishes in the first tournaments of the season, the Bruins fell to 14th place out of 17 teams in the U.S. Collegiate Championship on Oct. 16.
“It was extremely disappointing considering the first two events, said freshman Cole Madey. “We hadn’t played great but we hadn’t played that bad.”
To counter the disappointing result, the Bruins took the week’s practice before the upcoming Gifford Collegiate tournament to focus on two things: dealing with pressure and making short putts.
“Something we talked about was trying to make practice more competitive,” Madey said. “(Or) trying to make it more stressful so when you are actually in a tournament, it is not as stressful.”
When Madey, one of the team’s starters, found himself stressed during the last tournament, he was still able to find positives from his mistake of overstressing himself.
“The first day at Georgia Tech … it’s such a big event, one of the best fields I ever played against before and as a freshman,” Madey said. “You try and play for your team so much. You put so much importance on how you start and how you are playing that you kind of just lose sight of your own game.”
Madey has continued to earn his spot in the starting lineup, making this upcoming event his fourth event in his first collegiate season. However, his lack of experience in big tournaments gave him difficulty in managing his mental state.
“I forgot exactly how I was doing but I wasn’t doing that bad (in the beginning),” Madey said. “But it felt like it already drained so much energy in the first six holes because I was putting so much importance on it.”
With the 14th-place finish behind them, the Bruins will look toward the Gifford Collegiate in Carlsbad on Nov. 2-4. UCLA has won the championship five times in its 10-year history, including last season with an overall score of 15-under par.
The team had a qualifier game Friday and Sunday to finalize the lineup for the upcoming event, narrowing the three qualified players to two spots.
Aside from Madey, sophomore Corey Shaun earned his place in the starting lineup for the second time this season.
“It’s a real treat,” Shaun said. “Not just that but playing in San Diego where I am from which is real cool.”
While Shaun didn’t get much playing time last season as a freshman, only appearing in four tournaments total, he has been working on his game to make up for that lost time. Now he hopes to help the team win in his backyard.
“I have been working on my putting a lot in particular. That’s what the coach has been wanting us to work on a lot is short putts,” Shaun said.
Like Madey, Shaun said that he understands the pressure that players go through mentally before every single shot.
“I try to stay really patient. You have to understand that every single shot you hit is incredibly important,” Shaun said. “But at the same time you can’t let that bother you a ton.”
Compiled by Julie Song, Bruin Sports reporter.