Golf has many ups and downs, literally and emotionally. Fortunately, the men’s golf team is making their way out of the sand trap of disappointment and into the smooth putting green of victory.

Though the team did not do as well as they wanted to at the Jekyll Island Invitational over spring break, they are still resolved to end up on top this season. According to head coach Justin Tereshko, despite moving down in the rankings, conditions still look good for the rest of the semester.

“All the teams that beat us (at Jekyll Island) were good teams,” Tereshko said. “We had a good talk afterwards, so I think everyone’s mindset is in the right spot.”

With golf, it is hard to stay down for long, since the rankings are constantly changing and can reflect different things.

“It depends on what tournaments you play,” said senior Kendall Dunn. “You can play easier tournaments and win those…you can play more difficult ones and finish lower, but probably move up higher in the rankings. We’ve kind of been fluctuating back and forth.”

Dunn and the rest of the team feel confident that their ranking should move up again after the Grandover Match Play Invitational, which they are hosting this year.

Because all of spring semester is crunch time for the golf team, they have been playing nearly nonstop throughout the semester to make sure they can put their best efforts into getting to the national championship.

“We’ve been grinding really hard at it,” Dunn said. “At Jekyll, we figured out the things we really need to focus on for tournament play, from going from pretty good to really good.”

Although they are excited about the many upcoming tournaments this month, the team is focused on making it to the national championship and performing well when they get there.

The social dynamic has been a boost for the team. As a tight-knit group, they are able to think about what is best for the group and not just for themselves.

“I’ve looked at individual rankings maybe once or twice,” Dunn said. “A lot of guys will say this that we didn’t come here to Guilford to win an individual championship, we came here to win a team championship. I mean if we were to win an individual one, that would be more icing on the cake.”

Tereshko has encouraged this type of team dynamic as well.

“The trick is to get all five guys to think about the other four teammates before themselves while they’re out there making decisions,” he said.

Despite many unknowns, the team is excited to prove themselves this season and return to their tradition of making it to nationals.

“I just want the conference championship to get here already,” Tereshko said. “The team is the same way. You work all year to get to that. We missed the national championship for the first time last year, so I’m hungry to get back and they are too. I think they know what to do to get us back there.”