Four Bruins teed off the season on Monday at the Reinhardt University Spring Invitational in Georgia. BJU placed sixth in the tournament, which hosted seven schools and 40 golfers. Junior Clay Wiginton and sophomores Blake Counts, Micah Gold and Kyle James represented the Bruins in the two-day tournament. Throughout the spring, the team will compete in eight tournaments in total, with the most distant tournament taking place in Tennessee.

Lack of good practice on the greens and the winds on the course proved to be a concern at the Spring Invitational. The four Bruins scored higher than their average and fell behind. “[This weather was] a little tougher for scoring conditions,” Wiginton said. “On Monday the lowest was 71, one under par. We didn’t play especially well, but I played better on Monday. I shot a 74.”

Counts improved five or six strokes each round and totaled scores of 84 on Monday and 85 on Tuesday. Gold scored 85 on Monday and 79 on Tuesday.

“It was a struggle for me,” Gold said. “We had a good week of practice, but it was the first tournament, so getting back into the swing of stuff was challenging. The weather was a little challenging because we practiced in cold, wet, rainy conditions, and then the weather was beautiful. But it was a little windy, and the ground was wet, so it was tough to get used to.”

Seven more tournaments lie ahead for the team, and the team will travel to Georgia again on Monday to participate in the Savannah College of Art and Design Invitational Tournament, a two-day tournament.

“We had a really good first tournament as a team,” Gold said. “Overall, it was a good tournament, and we are looking to improve this semester.”