The theme of the weekend was improvement.
“I’m starting to get my swing back; I’m starting to get my feel back,” said senior Jackson Debusschere.
After a Saturday outing at the Roar-EE Invitational affected by winds from a storm cell in the second round, men’s golf still managed to finish seventh out of 10 teams, with the highest performances led by junior Weston Warden (72-75) and sophomore Tyler Debusschere (76-72).
“We showed this week that we could consistently go out there, and everyone can put a round together and contribute to the team score, which is massive,” Jackson Debusschere said. “The Ivy League has gotten a whole lot more competitive in golf over the past couple of years, and we're able to still hang around and show that we belong and we can compete with the rest of these teams.”
The Red finished with a total score of 596, beating out Binghamton University, Saint Francis University and the Lafayette College B team. Sophomore Viktor Stollinger and freshman TJ Betlow both found a groove with steady rounds of 76 and 75. Jackson Debusschere finished out at 12-over par with rounds of 75 and 81.
St. Thomas Aquinas won the tournament at two-over par (578). Lafayette College (580) and Dartmouth (581) finished close behind.
Jackson Debusschere said the conditions were not ideal.
“By the afternoon, the greens burned out a little bit,” Jackson Debusschere said. “They started getting a little faster, a little more firm, so it's harder to control your spin. Also, the wind absolutely picked up.”
Despite the unpredictable weather, his brother Tyler Debusschere powered through and improved by four strokes in the second round of play, carding four birdies en route to an even-par 72. According to him, his best shot came on the 16th hole, when he was centimeters away from the holy grail of golf, the infamous hole-in-one.
“The guy who was watching it by the green said it rolled right over the edge of the cup,” Tyler Debuscherre said.
Overall, though, the best part of Tyler Debusschere’s game was his approach.
“I hit 14 of 18 greens in the first round and 15 [greens] in the second round,” Tyler Debusschere said. “We play these courses every year, and you think you [can] just go back and try to do the same thing every time. My game plan on some holes has changed based on the distances.”
Jackson Debusschere, a seasoned veteran and leader of the Red, said he feels confident after another solid weekend.
“I think our main goal is to just continue to get better weekend after weekend going in,” Jackson Debusschere said.
The Red are gaining momentum with the Ivy League Tournament at the Watching Valley Golf Club in Springfield, Pennsylvania, from April 19-21. Coverage of the matchup can be streamed on ESPN+.
Isabel DeLuna and Roscoe Heuer are Sun Contributors and can be reached at ied6@cornell.edu and rsh269@cornell.edu.
