Season in full swing for golfing Scots

After only two seasons of intercollegiate golf competition, the Maryville College golf program has built a solid foundation for future players to build on from the word “go.”

Coach Ron Waters has a long-term plan to increase the profile of Scots golf, and the progress the men and women have made in a short period of time is testament to Waters’ work.

During the 2010-11 season, the Scots men posted two team titles, including the GSAC Conference Championship. Their other team success last term was the Piedmont Team Invitational. After opening the year with a fourth-place finish in Danville, Ky., at Centre College’s Jim English Invitational, the Scots returned to Piedmont hoping for a repeat performance 12 months later and trying to preserve the retention of their crown.

However, things didn’t go exactly according to plan, and the Scots stumbled their way to a seventh-place finish in the field of eight competing teams. Their cause wasn’t helped as junior JT Randolph stuffed his hand after a shot out of a bunker in his opening round.

The endeavor of freshman Zach Honea was a positive for the Scots as he posted a 76 in his first round, then a steady 75 to follow at The Orchards Golf Club in Clarkesville, Ga.

The Lady Scots are fairly thin on the ground and have just four student-athletes to compete in team competition. The Scots lady golfers came out of the traps a little timidly in the season opener, with the Jim English Invitational proving a challenge at Centre College. They finished up seventh , as a couple of early dropped shots in the first round proved to be detrimental beyond all repair.

Nevertheless, the next competition for the ladies at Piedmont was far more favorable. Despite not having a full complement of players due to sickness, the Scots took a step forward from the Invitational at Centre.  Junior Sarah Edmiston was a real bright spark for the Scots as she tied the Maryville women’s all-time scoring record for 18 holes as she shot a round of 84.

For both teams, the next competition concluded over the weekend in the shape of the Chick-Fil-A Invitational at Berry College in Rome, Ga. Another competitive field provided ample opportunity for forward steps and positive progress.

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