VIDEO: WKU men’s golf youth movement continues

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — The youth movement will continue for the WKU men’s golf team this week.

The Hilltoppers will once again field a team of all sophomores and freshmen as they compete in the East Carolina Intercollegiate at Brook Valley Country Club in Greenville, N.C.

“Having a really young team gives the younger guys a lot of experience, so they’re going to start making better decisions on the golf course and going to learn a lot because they’re playing competitive golf,” WKU redshirt freshman Linus Lo said.

Lo will be in the rotation for WKU this week in North Carolina, along with redshirt sophomore Billy Tom Sargent, sophomores Blake Smith and Stuart Easton, and freshman Kyle Jeffers.

The Hilltoppers are one of 11 teams competing in the field.

Play begins with 36 holes on Monday, starting at 6:50 a.m. CT with tee times. Tuesday’s final round begins at the same time.

Six of WKU’s nine golfers are redshirt sophomores or younger, and that group has competed in the bulk of the team’s competition this season.

Sargent has participated in all nine tournaments with two victories, five top-25 finishes and a 72.5 stroke average. He’s led the team five times.

Smith and Easton have also been steady competitors, but behind Sargent in stroke average are actually Lo and Jeffers – two golfers in their first years of college competition, each averaging 74 strokes per round.

True freshman Tom Bevington has also been very active, competing in the first three tournaments of the spring.

“It’s a whole different ballgame, college golf,” Jeffers said. “I’m learning everyday how to practice, how to improve my game, so it’s been really great for that.”

Lo has finished in the top 25 three times this season, and he started the spring by tying for 23rd in the Mobile Sports Authority Intercollegiate. That began with a career-low 68.

Jeffers also had his best showing in that event in Mobile, Ala., tying for 14th as an individual.

“I feel like I’ve matured on the golf course,” Jeffers said. “I’ve started making better decisions about how to play each golf course and I’m learning how to cope with bad shots a lot better.”

After this week’s event, WKU has just one more tournament before heading into the Conference USA Championship on April 23-26.

“We’re improving every day,” Lo said. “I think our team is the best it’s been in a while. We have a couple tournaments coming up in the spring and then the conference tournament, so we’ve got to play really good for that.”

How to follow the Hilltoppers: For complete information on WKU Hilltopper Golf, follow the team on Twitter at @WKUMensGolf.