Northwestern University Athletics
No. 17 Wildcats Set for Oregon Invitational
3/21/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
March 21, 2003
EVANSTON, Ill. - Northwestern's 17th-ranked (Golfweek/Sagarin) men's golf team will head west next week, playing at the Oregon Duck Invitational in Eugene, Ore. The 54-hole tournament begins Monday, March 24 with 36 holes, while the final round is set for Tuesday, March 25. All rounds will be played at the 6,854-yard, par-72 Eugene Country Club.
Following a seventh-place team finish at last week's Seminole Invitational in Tallahassee, Fla., NU head coach Pat Goss plans to enter his entire squad into the Oregon field. Five players' scores will be eligible to count in the team competition, while three other golfers will play as individuals.
"With all eight players competing, my goal is to see who continues to step forth and claim the fourth and fifth spots in our lineup," Goss said. "I am encouraged by our improved depth this year."
NU senior Scott Harrington (Portland, Ore./Jesuit) returns to his home state for the tournament. In all, five of the eight Wildcats hail from the western region of the country.
"With so many players from the west coast, I am excited for the players to have an opportunity to compete in front of their parents and friends," Goss said.
Senior Bjorn Widerstedt (Vasteras, Sweden) led NU in Florida, finishing sixth individually at 4-under for the tournament. Widerstedt shot a sizzling 6-under 66 in the second round of the event, which was hosted by Florida State. Junior Tom Johnson (Sacramento, Calif./Del Campo) also turned a solid performance, finishing 23rd at 3-over.
"This event offers a great chance for Bjorn, Tom and Scott to all play well at the same time," Goss said. "When this happens we will be very hard to beat. They have all had great success at different times and I am anxious for the event when all three put it together."
No. 7 Arizona and No. 10 UCLA headline the Duck Invitational. Vanderbilt-which features the top-ranked individual golfer in the nation, Brandt Snedeker-will also compete. NU is the only Big Ten team in the field.
