[Men's Golf] Title reflections, looking forward to Nationals challenge, Houk and Men's Golf ...

The conversation was still fresh in Coleman Houk (SR/Lawrence, Kan.)'s mind last week as he and his Kansas Wesleyan teammates celebrated the Coyotes' first Kansas Conference men's golf championship since 1970.

 

"I remember four years ago when (former KWU coach Randy) Bemiss brought my class in," Houk said. "He told us it was the start of something special. Of course, that's what every coach is going to say in a program that's kind of lacking.

 

"He just kept building it and building it and handed it off to (current coach Randy) Syring. It's been amazing how far we've progressed in four years. We've come from last to first as far as strength of our program."

 

The Coyotes claimed the title by winning both legs of the conference tournament. They had a 10-shot lead after the first 54 holes at Crestview County Club in Wichita in March, then pulled away during the second 54-hole round last week at Buffalo Dunes Golf Course in Garden City. They finished with a 22-shot advantage over runner-up Sterling.

 

Houk, a senior from Lawrence, was the overall KCAC champion and finished third in the Second Leg behind teammates Ben Hadden (SR/Shawnee Mission, Kan.) and Troy Watson (JR/Coffeyville, Kan.).

 

The championship comes after a year of transition that saw Syring hired as KWU's coach after Bemiss passed away in May, 2017.

 

"I never could have dreamed of winning conference as a team, let alone as an individual," Houk said. "In high school I played golf for one year and I was thrilled to play college golf for Randy Bemiss. I never could imagine it culminating into this."

 

The title didn't come easily. Sterling matched the Coyotes over the final 36 holes, forcing them to take notice, especially on the final 18 holes.

 

"We were pretty tentative on that front nine, maybe a little too comfortable with the lead," Houk said. "Instead of trying to score we were just trying to play conservative and consistent. Then we realized it wasn't going to work and we turned around and played how we could.

 

"I wasn't playing like how I could, just came in with a different attitude into the back nine."

 

Syring saw the same thing.

 

"I think we started off a little tight," he said. "Not consciously but sub-consciously there was a little bit of 'well, if we just don't screw this up we'll come out ahead.' Play not to lose rather than 'let's go get it.'

 

"I saw some tentative golf swings on the front that I don't normally see out of those players. So I was quick to remind them we're out here to win, not to avoid losing. I was so proud of them on the back nine. Every one of them turned in a round. This was the beginning of the season goal, especially for our seniors. They wanted to go out on top."

 

Weather conditions were less than ideal in Garden City, once again.

 

"When we teed off that first round the wind had to be blowing consistently at least 35 miles an hour and 40 or more," Houk said. "It started to calm down and it just got cold the next day. But we didn't expect ideal conditions going in and we prepared for it the weeks leading up to it."

 

Having played Buffalo Dunes previously helped.

 

"I really knew where I could miss and couldn't miss," Houk said. "Just knowing when to come up short, when to be a little long. I'd say it saved me at least five to 10 strokes throughout the course of the three rounds."

 

For Syring, the longtime pro at Salina Country Club before coming to KWU, winning the title was a special achievement, especially after finishing second to Bethany by five strokes in 2018.

 

"They all talk about how much they've improved since they've been here but I inherited a pretty good group of guys," Syring said. "Ben is the only one I recruited on this team.

 

"We all said we hope (Bemiss) is looking down and smiling at the result of what he started. It was his dream and I feel just blessed to be a part of it."

 

Syring also credited former assistant coach Howard Mahan, who led the team during the 2018 fall semester.

 

"He was huge in getting the team through coach Bemiss' death and bridging that gap between then and when I took over the program," Syring said. "There are very few people that could have brought them through, not only successfully on the golf course but successful emotionally as Howard did."

 

Next stop, the NAIA Championship on May 21-24 at Las Senda Golf Club in Mesa, Ariz.

 

Up to 30 teams and individuals will compete in the stroke-play format. There will be four rounds with the field cut after 36 holes.

 

"It's definitely a different kind of golf out there," Houk said. "The greens are going to be bigger, fairways will be faster."

 

"It's a bit of a target golf course," Syring said. "We're going to be working on making sure everybody's got that club in their bag that they can hit the fairway off the tee. It may not be driver every time.

 

"The golf course looks fairly long but really not any longer than what we're used to. The grass is really short around the greens and creates a different type of shot making than what we're used to around here. We've got to find a way to work on that before we leave."

 

Syring said his team will travel to other area courses in an attempt to simulate conditions they'll encounter in Arizona. The Coyotes also will have two practice rounds at Las Sendas before the tournament begins.

 

Houk expressed concerns about the weather – tongue in cheek.

 

"The windier it gets and the colder it gets, the better the chance we've got to win this thing," he said.

 

"We haven't had one really good golf day," Syring said. "(Warm weather) might well be a bit unusual but I have to admit I'm looking forward to it."

 

Houk, Hadden and Watson will be joined by Logan Vacca (JR/Coffeyville, Kan.) and Pat Mercer with Austin Odom (JR/Sanger, Texas) the alternate.

 

"We'll be prepared, we know that, and we'll go down there with the attitude that we want to make a statement for Kansas Wesleyan," Syring said.