Golfweek

This week I caught up with Texas Tech women’s coach JoJo Robertson. It’s her first year in Lubbock, Texas after learning from one of the best coaches in the country, Devon Brouse, for five years. I caught up with the rookie head coach to see what she has learned, and to see how things are going in Lubbock.

You spent five seasons as an assistant for Devon Brouse at Purdue, what did you learn from him to help you prepare for your first head coaching opportunity?

I am so thankful to Coach Brouse for allowing me the opportunity to work for him. I still consider him one of the best in college coaching. What I learned the most from him is what hard work will do. Coach always got the best out of his players and that’s what I hope to bring with me to Texas Tech.

How tough of a decision was it to leave Purdue after putting in so much time and hard work there?

It was a very tough decision for me to leave Purdue after five years. I left my brother and his family, but at the same time, became much closer to ...

Each year there seems to always be a buzz around a new event on the college schedule - remember Golfweek’s Conference Challenge this past fall? (Oh, and by the way, dates and sites for next year’s conference challenge soon will be announced.)

But, it’s another Conference Challenge that is creating some talk - the inaugural Pac-10/SEC Challenge for the women.

There is little debate that the best two golf conferences are the Pac-10 and the SEC, and the women are hoping to bring all 22 schools together for a showdown. The 2010 event is scheduled to be played Nov. 5-7 at the Stanford Golf Course with the idea that the tournament would rotate each year between the two conferences. The event also could be played once every two years.

There also is talk of a pre-tournament event that would include former players competing in an 18-hole stroke play competition and a clinic for the Bay Area First Tee program.

The last golfer to be inducted into the Stanford Athletics Hall of Fame was Tom Watson, who played for the Cardinal from 1969 to ’71.

Now it’s Tiger’s turn.

Tiger Woods will join Watson and a host of other previous athletic inductees during a halftime ceremony Saturday at Stanford’s home football game against arch-rival California.

“It’s going to be pretty special,” said current Stanford men’s coach Conrad Ray, a teammate of Woods during his two-year (1994-96) stint at Stanford. “He’ll be presented with a (Hall of Fame) crystal, and I believe they’re going to show a video as well. He was also invited by (football coach) Jim Harbaugh to be the honorary captain for the game, to talk to the team before the game and do the pregame coin toss.

“Tiger belongs in (the Stanford Hall of Fame), that’s for sure,” Ray said. “Everyone here is excited.”

Woods’ stay in northern California will be a short one because it follows a heavy dose of international travel. After his victory at last week’s Australian Masters, he flew to Dubai for some work with a course he is designing. He was to arrive ...

More individual events are being conducted without team scores and not a lot of people are talking about it.

Last year Duke held a tournament - the Coca-Cola Duke Individual – with an “individual only” field. North Carolina’s Philip Chauncey won the event by three shots over Florida’s Tim McKenney. While this was not the first event of its kind, it was certainly the biggest with more than 60 Division I players. This fall, the University of Washington hosted the Washington National Individual Championship, and for the first time, the women were involved in an individual tournament of their own.

We will continue to see more individual tournaments. Why? Because it is a great way for coaches to get their players involved in actual competition and it’s legal to do.

“We want all of our players to have as many competitive opportunities as possible and that provides a richer collegiate experience and helps prepare them to contribute the team,” Washington coach Matt Thurmond said.

On the surface this is a very confusing rule. What coaches would like to see is something as simple as each player is allowed 24 days of competition, which is the same a team is ...

Danielle Kang will add some much-needed depth to the Pepperdine women’s golf team next semester. The California senior plans to graduate from high school a semester early so that she can join the Waves in January. 

Pepperdine’s five-player roster was hit hard by the Swine Flu last month when both a player and a coach fell ill. The Waves won their first two events of the season before struggling to 17th at the NCAA Preview.

Kang, medalist at the 2009 U.S. Women’s Amateur, recently wrapped up an impressive high school campaign. She won the Mormonte League by 20 shots with a 15-under total after rounds of 10-under 57 and 5-under 67. 

Pepperdine is ranked No. 13 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings.

I remember the first time I met Mallory Code. It was a mixed-team event at her home course, Avila Golf and Country Club, and she appeared to have a crush on my partner. She was elementary-school age, and I was in high school (as was my partner). Mallory left a big impression on me that day in Tampa, Fla.

She made a habit of big impressions.

I followed Mallory’s health and career for years after that first meeting, though I never knew her well. When I received word Nov. 9 that she had died at age 25, I immediately thought of how many heavy hearts would be scattered around the country. Her inspiration was far-reaching. Her faith unyielding.

Code fought cystic fibrosis, and the complications that come with it, her entire life. She quit playing golf after her freshman year of college because her body wouldn’t cooperate. 

Golf was a family affair in the Code household. All three Code children played for the University of Florida.

Her last brush with the game came in the summer, when the USGA allowed Code the use of a cart to caddie for her father, Brian, at U.S. Senior Amateur qualifying ...

ORLANDO, Fla. – Daniela Lendl delivered a handful of surprises Sunday at the Golfweek Junior Invitational. Lendl popped around the corner of the 16th hole at Reunion Resort’s Legacy Course, announcing that she was there to watch a future teammate.

That teammate was Stephanie Meadow, the tournament champion. Lendl will join Meadow at Alabama in the fall of 2011 after verbally committing to the school Friday.

Lendl’s older sisters Marika (a sophomore) and Isabelle (a freshman) both play for Florida. Daniela almost became a Gator as well, but fell in love with everything about Alabama: the coach, the campus, the weather and the list goes on.

“I didn’t want to follow my sisters’ footsteps,” Daniela said. “I loved Florida but I wanted to be able to create my own identity.”

With more than a year and a half of high school left, Daniela is happy to have her college decision out of the way. That leaves her free to focus on other things, like a schedule full of tournaments the 16-year-old can name rapid fire.

Watching Meadow (which was the other surprise, as her friend didn’t know she would be dropping in for the final round), Daniela ...

When UCF tees it up again in the spring, expect the Knights to be in new uniforms.

On Nov. 4, UCF’s basketball team played an exhibition game against St. Leo University. So, what does that have to do with golf?

Marcus Jordan is a freshman on the Knights’ basketball team. Basketball fans might recognize the surname “Jordan.’’ His father, Michael, played a few games in the NBA, you might recall.

While Marcus Jordan was being recruited by UCF, he was told that he would be able to wear his father’s Nike Air Jordan brand of basketball shoes. UCF has a contract through 2009 with Adidas to supply uniforms, shoes, hats and apparel. A verbal agreement, according to The Orlando Sentinel, would have extended their partnership through 2015 with a six-year, $3 million deal.

Would have.

Marcus Jordan stepped onto the UCF Arena court wearing a pair of Nikes while his teammates had the school-issue Adidas sneakers. An Adidas spokeswoman told the Sentinel that UCF is not living up to its end of the deal. Thus, no contract extension.

Men’s golf coach Bryce Wallor told Golfweek on Nov. 5 that his team still will be wearing Adidas, at ...

When the college golf season started, several of us (including me) did not know what to expect from Florida State this season. But, coach Trey Jones has led the “Tomahawk Chop” to a top-10 ranking.

Your guys have had a great fall and are currently No. 7 in the Golfweek/Sagarin Rankings. To what do you credit your strong start?

Our preparation has been extremely productive. The guys are getting their work done at home and are businesslike on the road. Having someone in the top 5 individually in each event is always one of our goals, and we got that from three different guys this fall. Our freshmen both had a top-10 finish and counted in 18 of the first 21 rounds they played in.

What is the biggest difference between the team you have this year compared to the one you had a year ago?

Seath Lauer. Seath is a different player, person and teammate. This is a close group that has a great deal of confidence and respect in each other.

Your last tournament finished Oct. 12. You don’t tee it up again until Feb. 3 in Hawaii. What will your team be doing during that ...

A little more than a week ago, Colorado State won the Del Walker hosted by Long Beach State. It was the Rams’ third consecutive victory at this event. After looking at the scores, I was reminded of something that has always puzzled me with college golf.

This event used a different format. Each team played six players, with the five best scores counting. This is legal and counts as an official event.

How can this be? If teams were to play 6-count-5 all season long, we would see different results and certainly have different rankings. I have said for two years now that match play is even worse than using one more player and counting one more score. When you play team match play, you have an entirely different style of play, and the rankings, which are used to get into the postseason, would be drastically different if match play were the preferred format of play.

And then there's this: While the 6-count-5 format is allowed on the men’s side, it’s not permissible on the women’s side. The Big Ten Women’s Championship and a few select tournaments during the season use this format. However, the ...

THUMBS UP:

1. North Florida: The Ospreys tied for second at the David Toms, just one shot back of host and champion LSU. UNF had four players in the top 25 and rebounded nicely after its T10 finish at the Brickyard. Coach Schroeder and his team have been close a couple times now this fall. The boys from the 904 (Ponte Vedra’s area code) finished second at Wolf Run, 5th at the Gary Koch and now this near-victory in Louisiana.

2. Southern Methodist: Of all the teams in the state of Texas, how long will it take you to list SMU amongst the state’s best? The Mustangs, out of Dallas, almost earned their third victory of the fall at the Baylor Intercollegiate. Coach Jay Loar’s team came in second and finished 3 shots behind defending national champion Texas A&M. With wins at the Gopher Invitational and Adams Cup early this fall, this team sure is playing with lots of confidence.

3. Florida: The Gators finished second at the Isleworth Collegiate? No joke. Lead by Tyson Alexander’s T-7 finish, the Gators played with Oklahoma State and Stanford in the final round. It was remarkable to see what this team ...

One of the more noteworthy performances from the Isleworth Collegiate Invitational – outside of Bud Cauley’s victory, of course – was the second-place showing from Stanford junior Sihwan Kim. The former U.S. Junior champ appears to be back on his game.

Kim was a first-team All-American after his freshman season in 2007-08. He struggled last year, finishing 129th in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings, but appears to have found his game again.

Kim finished one shot back of Cauley at Isleworth with rounds of 70-74-68. They were the only two players to finish under par. It was Kim’s second consecutive top-10 after a T-8 at The Prestige.

“He was putting too much pressure on himself after a stellar freshman year, but now is more relaxed and calm on the course, which I belive is the difference,” Stanford head coach Conrad Ray said in an e-mail. “He is also putting better the last few weeks.”

This summer, Kim finished T-2 at the Scratch Players, T-4 at the Porter Cup and fifth at the Northeast Amateur.

“He seems to be having more fun on the course,” Ray said. “I think his ‘self-talk’ has also been a big difference. He isn’t ...

BOULDER CITY, Nev. – The streak is over. After 66 consecutive events without a victory, Arizona won the windy Las Vegas Collegiate Showdown on Tuesday at the Boulder Creek Golf Club.

Arizona posted a 12-over 300 in the final round to stay ahead of Florida, which had the best final round score with a 297. The Gators briefly grabed the lead on the back nine, but settled for second place. Louisville placed third followed by UC Davis and Arkansas.

“We’re back,” said third-year head coach Shelly Haywood, shortly after her team had seen the final results.

That last time the Wildcats won was at the Edean Ihlanfeldt Invitational on Oct. 8, 2003, when Erica Blasberg, Whitney Welch, Mar Garcia, Lani Elston and Cassandra Kirkland brought home the trophy from Seattle.

That leaves a few recruiting classes that carried a Wildcats golf bag that never experienced a team win. The most notable player in those classes: All-American Alison Walshe.

This time it was an entirely new cast. Led by medalist Sherlyn Popelka, a freshman, Margarita Ramos, Alejandra Llaneza, Isabelle Boineau and Nikki Koller - a new group of Wildcats wil bring home the hardware from Las Vegas.

One year ago, Pepperdine recorded ...

With the fall season winding down, I find it interesting that a large number of teams have gone up and down. It makes one wonder how a team can play so good, or bad, and then reverse its performance. I guess “that’s golf!”

Some “go figure” teams of the fall season:

Alabama: After a 12th-place finish at the Ping/Golfweek Invitational, the Tide wins the Pate and finishes fifth at Isleworth.

Arizona State: A win at Olympia Fields and a third at the Ping/Golfweek Invitational is followed by a 12th at Isleworth.

California: A win at the Spartan and another at the Mackenzie is sandwiched by a 12th at Windon.

Georgia Tech: A dismal 12th at Brickyard, but the Yellow Jackets bounce back and win Bridgestone.

Illinois: Follow win at Wolf Run with seventh at Olympia Fields, and victory at Windon with ninth at Isleworth.

Kent State: Golden Flashes go from fifth at Maryland to 11th at Ping/Golfweek Invitational, to third at Windon, to 12th at Ridges, to T-2 at David Toms.

Northwestern: Victory at Navy and second at Windon are offset by 12th at Olympia Fields and 13th at David Toms.

Oklahoma: Sooners open with win ...

Many people thought Duke might have been an afterthought this college season. After all, the Blue Devils lost three-time player of the year Amanda Blumenherst and Jennie Lee. I caught up with the leader of the Dukies, coach Dan Brooks, to talk about his team's recent victory at the NCAA Fall Preview and what the country can expect out of the Blue Devils this season.

That was some win at the Preview. What did you think of the golf course at Landfall? Is it a championship golf course?

The Dye Course at Landfall is a great golf course. Virtually every hole gives you ample opportunity to either take risk or play it safe. The superintendent, Jeff Mack, had the course in excellent shape. If the excellent green condition is anything in the (NCAA) championship like it was in the Preview, the best putters will be rewarded, and this is what you want in a championship.

What impressed you most about the way your team played?

There are many things I liked about my team last weekend. I liked the fact that Alison Whitaker came through in the most important event of the fall. I also liked the fact that ...