MOBILE, Ala. – Spring Hill College men's golf head coach
Steve Hodges sat down for a preseason Q&A to discuss the potential of the team this season.
How have preseason preparations been going?
"Our preseason actually has tournaments in it, so we have already played four events and we won one. We went and played a few events down in Florida against some of the teams that we may see at the Regional Championship if we win the conference again. Our preseason is really just an extension of the regular season. We didn't fare as well as we did in our last event down in Florida, but we still stacked-up to most of the competition."
How does the energy from winning conference last year translate into this year?
"We started the 2022 spring season with a win at the Ram Invitational which gave the guy's confidence to believe that they could win. We won again at the SIAC Championship, which got us to the Regional. We didn't fare as well at the Regional as I think we are capable of."
Who is emerging as a team leader?
"We have five seniors that have started a few of the tournaments for us. We have a very senior latent class, but we have two freshman that have shown potential to shake that lineup up.
Who are the newcomers?
"[
Hudson Carr] hits the ball a long way for a guy of not much stature, he's a small guy. He's been a great putter and a pleasant surprise. [
Carlos De Nicolas Peral] has also shown the potential to shoot scores to compete with these guys. If you're not shooting around par better than the upperclassman, you won't be competing.
What does this season mean for the seniors?
"It's been a lot of fun with those guys. I remember when they came in and I immediately was able to tell that these guys can do something the older they get. I actually sat them down and said look you guys have a lot of talent here as freshmen lets work hard and by the time you leave here maybe well have won some championships. [
Rasmus Malmborg] always plays number one for us. [
Yannik Wessel] is another solid contributor. [
Brayden Seguin], [Jackson Maniscalo], and [
Brennan Dolnick] also do a lot of contributing for the team. The five of them together makes for a deep squad, which is helpful when you're counting four scores out of five.
Any tournaments that the team is looking forward to?
"This semester we have a good chance at winning every event we play in. We open up again at the Ram Invitational, which we won last year. Nothings a given. Golfs such a weird game sometimes you just don't have it that week. I think we definitely have a good enough team to win it. We'll go to Hattiesburg a few weeks later, and meet some of the same teams, maybe a few stronger. We like the golf course. I think we still have a good chance of winning it. When we go to Athens and play most of the Gulf South Conference teams, that will give us a good idea of where we stand nationally and regionally, if and when we do make it to the Regional Championship.
Anything else you'd like to add?
"We have a good chance of winning the SIAC Championship again. We don't have the competition site yet, but we are hoping to get it down here on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, which would be an advantage to us. Just a wonderful bunch of guys that has been a privilege to be around, and it is going to be tough for me when they go to walk off the golf course for the first time.
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