CSR (2006 Men's Golf Outlook)

CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR AUGUST 30, 2006

(EDITOR'S NOTE: Fourth in a Series of Seven Fall Sports Previews)

2006 Men's Golf Preview

With its top three golfers returning from a year ago, the Calvin men’s golf team has hopes of finishing in the top half of the MIAA standings this fall.

According to head coach Brian Bolt, the challenge will be to find a pair of dependable golfers to fill out the rest of Calvin’s starting lineup of five.

“We feel good about our top three golfers,” said Bolt. “All three were in the top 20 of our league. If we can find a golfer or two that can step into that fourth spot, we’ll have a strong season.”

Leading the list of returning golfers is senior Jeff TenBrink (Kalamazoo/Kalamazoo Christian HS) who is coming off a record-breaking 2005 campaign. TenBrink finished the 2005 MIAA season with an average of 75.9 strokes-per-round, establishing a new Calvin single-season record in the process. TenBrink’s season average was also good for seventh place in the final MIAA standings and earned him a spot on the All-MIAA second team.

Sophomore Brad Tindall (Vicksburg/Vicksburg HS) also returns after just missing All-MIAA second team honors in 2005 when he finished 14th in the final MIAA standings with an average of 78.4 strokes-per-round. In addition, senior Tim VanVugt (Brookfield, WI/Brookfield East HS) is back after finishing 18th in the final 2005 MIAA standings with an average of 79.6 strokes-per-round.

Two returning letterwinners that could contend for spots in the starting lineup are seniors Jake Wolffis (Muskegon/Western Michigan Christian HS) and sophomore Drew Virkus (Portage/Kalamazoo Christian HS). Both golfers were in-and-out of Calvin’s starting lineup last fall. In a league outing hosted by Tri-State on September 21, Virkus fired a season-best score of 75.

“Jake and Drew are both capable of filling spots in our starting lineup,” said Bolt. “They have experience and shown they are capable of playing at a high level. I expect both players to be in the mix.”

Bolt also has an incoming freshman class of 10 golfers that should allow him plenty of flexibility when filling out his lineup. “We’ve got a good freshmen class,” said Bolt. “I think we’ll have at least one or two freshmen step up and contribute.”

Calvin will open its season on September 1 and 2 at the Olivet Comet Classic. The Knights will also compete at the Red Poling Classic at the Dearborn TPC on September 26. Calvin will open its MIAA campaign on September 7 at a league outing hosted by Albion at the Medalist Golf Club. Calvin will host a league outing on October 2 at the Watermark Country Club. The final league outing will be hosted by Hope on October 5 at the Wuskowhan Golf Club.

The 2006 MIAA champion will also receive an automatic bid to the NCAA III Tournament next spring. This is the first year that the league has received an automatic bid.

Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
Received on Wed Aug 30 23:08:50 2006