The prestigious Minikahda Club in Minneapolis, Minn., has played host to many top events throughout its existence, including the 1916 U.S. Open where Chick Evans won the event as an amateur, beating the likes of world-renowned golfers such as Jock Hutchison and Walter Hagen.
The Vandal women haven’t fared as well as Evans though, starting the Minnesota Invitational at 72 over par, putting them in 11th out of 12 schools at the end of day one. Kent State leads the group, putting up a 25 over par thus far.
“We struggled in all areas of the game,” Idaho coach Lisa Johnson said. “You can’t get away with hitting an errant tee shot. It will penalize you. If you don’t make smart decisions out of the rough, it’s more likely to cost you strokes here than on some easier course.”
Individually, the Vandals haven’t done any better. After finishing her last tournament in Boise, tied for fifth, Leilanie Kim is currently tied for 23rd, firing 11 over par.
The rest of the athletes followed with Cassie McKinley tied for 41st with 16 over par, Amy Hasenoehrl tied for 45th with 18 over par, Rachel Choi tied for 63rd with 27 as did teammate Mary Sweeney.
After day one, the Vandals sat in 11th place and continue play Tuesday. With 18 holes of play left to go, there is still plenty of time for the team to make some moves up the leaderboard.
“I’m hopeful we will play much better (Tuesday),” Johnson said. “Maybe having played it will give them a better idea of what a good score is and what a manageable score is.”
Korbin McDonald can be reached at [email protected]