Northwestern University Athletics
Wildcats Battle Another Tough Field Starting Sunday
2/18/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
Feb. 18, 2004
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern's 26th-ranked men's golf team travels to Rio Grande, P.R. this weekend for the 2004 Puerto Rico Classic. The three-day tournament will be played on the par-72, 6,945-yard River Course at Westin Rio Mar Country Club beginning Sunday, Feb. 22. Teams will play 18 holes each day.
The Wildcats are coming off a 12th-place finish in the Mercedes-Benz Championships last week. Northwestern finished strong, shooting the sixth-best team round on the final day to climb two positions. Senior Tom Johnson (Sacramento, Calif./Del Campo) led NU with a fifth-place finish in the tournament, and thus earning Big Ten Golfer of the Week honors.
"My goal for this event is to continue the progress we made at the Mercedes-Benz last week," Northwestern head coach Pat Goss said. "If we continue to improve we should be able to compete with every team in the field."
For the second straight tournament, the Wildcats face a star-studded field. Five of the top six rated teams (Sagarin/Golfweek) in the country -- and seven of the top 11 -- are entered in the 18-team event.
"We beat some good teams last week and improved each day," Goss said. "That momentum should give the players confidence that they can compete with any team. I am particularly interested to see where we are against the other district and Big Ten teams."
Included in the field are Big Ten and district foes No. 6 Minnesota, No. 21 Illinois, No. 47 Kent State, No. 61 Purdue and Michigan.
"Every time you play district and Big Ten teams it is important, no matter what time of the year," Goss said. "With the district teams you are constantly jockeying for position to make NCAA Regionals, and with the strength of our district you have to be ready to compete every time out."
