Berea College Linksmen Headed to USCAA National Golf Championships

Berea College Linksmen Headed to USCAA National Golf Championships
Posted: Oct 11, 2014

The Berea College golf team is set to do something for the very first time in program history – play in the National Championships.  The Mountaineers will be leaving this weekend bound for State College, Pennsylvania and the 2014 USCAA Golf National Championships.

Our boys in Berea Blue will be tackling Penn State University's Blue Course on Monday the 13th and Tuesday the 14th.  The Blue Course finished renovations in 2006. The front nine, par 36, measures 3691 yards off the Nittany tees. Its layout is quite different than what is found on the back nine. Tee shots require close attention to placement. A rewarding tee shot can put the player in a position to reach carefully guarded greens. Twenty seven strategically placed green side bunkers on the front nine will challenge course management skills, and patience.  The front nine provides a challenge to the most experienced player by demanding not only length but accuracy.

The back nine, par 36, is a newly constructed nine holes completed in 1994 and new additions in 2006. It measures 3481 yards off the Nittany tees and provides a quite different experience than the front nine.  The back nine not only includes 16 green side bunkers, but adds to the challenge by including 11 strategically placed fairway bunkers. Water hazards on the 14th and the 18th can add pressure to a seemingly easy tee shot. The back nine will provide the participants with large undulating greens and a links style atmosphere.

Leading the way for the Mountaineers will be long hitting Austin Worley.  Coach Trent Milby believes that the PSU Blue Course's layout, especially the back nine,  "will really fit Austin's eye."   Sung Min "Kevin" Kim is also someone who Milby thinks will have a great showing, "any type of championship is a pressure cooker, consistency will be crucial, and Kevin is that for us as he is very steady."  The other members of the squad looking to capture Berea College's first National Championship include:  Ben Piercefield, Mike Scott, Trevor Humes and Derrick Lisaby to play well and make a strong showing team showing.   The top four scores from each six-man team count for the overall team score.

"This is a big step for our golf program and athletic program as this is just the first of what we expect to be several USCAA National Championship qualifying programs for us this season and beyond,"  stated Director of Athletics Mark Cartmill.