Men's golf travels to Navy to prep for Ivy Championships

For Penn men’s golf, there is one more tournament to prepare for its conference foes.

With one week left before the Ivy League Championships, the Quakers head to Annapolis, Md. for their last tune-up tournament.

The team will take part in the Navy Spring Invitational, held at the par-71 U.S. Naval Academy Golf Club course. The two-day event, lasting 54 holes, will take place from Saturday morning to Sunday afternoon.

After winning the invitational last year, the Quakers are looking to use it to take a final step forward before the final tournament of the year.

Penn will have extra motivation coming off of last week’s performance. Fresh off a fifth-place finish at the Princeton Invitational, the team looks to build off a strong start last weekend.

At Princeton, the Red and Blue came out of the gates strong — finishing in third on the first day — but faded in the final round.

In the first round of the Princeton Invitational, senior Colin St. Maxens shot a 68 and was in second place overall at the end of the round. Yet he could not maintain his form over the whole weekend and eventually finished tied for 14th.

Despite the wind being a huge factor in the final rounds, coach Bob Heintz claimed that putting was what the team is focused on improving the rest of the season.

“In order to do better, we definitely need to put better and play off the tee better, but hey, golf is a game of practice,” he said. “You need to practice golf until you get better.”

The U.S. Naval Academy Golf Course is similar to the par-71 Springdale Golf Club, where the Princeton Invitational was held last weekend. Each course has treacherous greens with a lot of slope, and they are not the longest of golf courses.

“They’re similar in a lot of respects, but [Navy’s course] is a little more wide open than Princeton in some areas,” junior Max Marsico said. “There’s a lot of experiences we can take to Navy.”

Knowing the importance of this coming week, the Red and Blue hope to do well and carry the momentum forward into the Ivy League Championships.

“We’re trending upward, everyone’s picked up their game. Everyone’s feeling that they’re on an upward path,” Marsico said. “As nice as it is to play well early in the year, the Ivy is the most important. Peaking then is very important.”

After the conclusion of the Navy Spring Invitational, the Quakers will head back to Maryland to compete in the Ivy League Championships from Friday, April 26 until Sunday, April 28.

SEE ALSO

Fifth-place finishes for Penn golf over weekend

BRIEF | Penn men and women’s golfers split up for weekend invitationals

Penn men’s golf finishes in middle of pack at Yale Spring Invitational

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