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The William and Mary men’s golf team showed flashes of brilliance last year, and with a large nucleus of returning players and an innovative new partnership with Callaway Golf, expectations are high heading in 2012-13. Director of Golf Jay Albaugh enters his 10th season at the helm looking to take the Tribe to the top of a new-look Colonial Athletic Association, and to challenge for a return to the NCAA Regionals for the first time since 2002.
Seniors
Senior Jeremy Wells enters his final year with the chance to make his mark on the Tribe record books by leading W&M back to national prominence. Already a two-time all-conference honoree, Wells is considered to be one of the strongest contenders for the individual medal at the CAA Championships and would tie Gary Barton ’05 for the program record with a third All-CAA selection. Wells was the team’s leading golfer last season with a 74.83 stroke average, and had a pair of top-10 finishes including second at Joe Agee Invitational.
Also looking to make a major impact in their final seasons are seniors Charles Godfrey and Spencer Kushner. Godfrey was 40th at the Joe Agee Invitational last fall, and improved from round-to-round at every tournament he played in as a junior. Kushner showed great promise with a 25th-place finish at the Joe Agee Invitational, and also was part of the travel squad at Kiawah Island.
Juniors
The Tribe junior class will be called upon once again to shoulder a heavy workload, and all four athletes have breakout potential in 2012-13. Patrick Leisure ranked third on the team last year with a 75.88 average while appearing in all but two events. His best performance came at the ODU Intercollegiate, where he had two rounds at or under par and finished +3 overall. Leisure also had top-20 finishes at Wexford Plantation and at Georgetown.
Michael Bekken and Nick Schafer both averaged in the high 76’s last year while appearing in seven of 10 events. Bekken was one of the most consistent shooters on the team, and had a pair of top-20 finishes to his credit. During the fall, he took 12th at the Joe Agee Invitational, and shot 73-73 over the final two rounds of the CAA Championships to finish 20th. Schafer showed an ability to go low (with three rounds of par or better, second-best on the team), and will become an even greater asset to the team as he gets better at consistently shooting in that range.
Rounding out the junior class is Tanner Taddeo, who will look to continue his improvement from last year. He improved both his scores and his finishes consistently from tournament to tournament, and earned a spot on the CAA Championship squad by the end of the spring.
Sophomores
The College’s sophomore class is also four strong, and their already strong play and continued development will allow the Tribe to remain in the championship discussion for the next three years. Alex Hicks ranked second on the team as a freshman behind only Wells, appearing in all but one tournament and averaging 75.78 strokes per round. Hicks had a team-best three top-20 finishes, including taking 13th at the CAA Championships, and led the Tribe in three of the final four tournaments. Will Smith joined the team in the spring after earning all-conference honors in soccer during the fall, and averaged 76.44 strokes in three tournaments. A former U.S. Amateur qualifier, Smith can consistently shoot in the mid-to-low 70s.
Like Taddeo, Charlie Kern came on strong at the end of the season to qualify for the CAA Championship squad. He started his career off very well with a +5 performance (73-73-72) at the Marshall Invitational, and worked over the summer at becoming a more consistent scoring threat. Joey Shroyer also impressed the coaches with his improvement over the summer, and will look to play an increased role this season and moving forward. As a freshman, Shroyer’s best performances came in the spring, at the Bash at the Beach and at Kingsmill.
Seniors
Senior Jeremy Wells enters his final year with the chance to make his mark on the Tribe record books by leading W&M back to national prominence. Already a two-time all-conference honoree, Wells is considered to be one of the strongest contenders for the individual medal at the CAA Championships and would tie Gary Barton ’05 for the program record with a third All-CAA selection. Wells was the team’s leading golfer last season with a 74.83 stroke average, and had a pair of top-10 finishes including second at Joe Agee Invitational.
Also looking to make a major impact in their final seasons are seniors Charles Godfrey and Spencer Kushner. Godfrey was 40th at the Joe Agee Invitational last fall, and improved from round-to-round at every tournament he played in as a junior. Kushner showed great promise with a 25th-place finish at the Joe Agee Invitational, and also was part of the travel squad at Kiawah Island.
Juniors
The Tribe junior class will be called upon once again to shoulder a heavy workload, and all four athletes have breakout potential in 2012-13. Patrick Leisure ranked third on the team last year with a 75.88 average while appearing in all but two events. His best performance came at the ODU Intercollegiate, where he had two rounds at or under par and finished +3 overall. Leisure also had top-20 finishes at Wexford Plantation and at Georgetown.
Michael Bekken and Nick Schafer both averaged in the high 76’s last year while appearing in seven of 10 events. Bekken was one of the most consistent shooters on the team, and had a pair of top-20 finishes to his credit. During the fall, he took 12th at the Joe Agee Invitational, and shot 73-73 over the final two rounds of the CAA Championships to finish 20th. Schafer showed an ability to go low (with three rounds of par or better, second-best on the team), and will become an even greater asset to the team as he gets better at consistently shooting in that range.
Rounding out the junior class is Tanner Taddeo, who will look to continue his improvement from last year. He improved both his scores and his finishes consistently from tournament to tournament, and earned a spot on the CAA Championship squad by the end of the spring.
Sophomores
The College’s sophomore class is also four strong, and their already strong play and continued development will allow the Tribe to remain in the championship discussion for the next three years. Alex Hicks ranked second on the team as a freshman behind only Wells, appearing in all but one tournament and averaging 75.78 strokes per round. Hicks had a team-best three top-20 finishes, including taking 13th at the CAA Championships, and led the Tribe in three of the final four tournaments. Will Smith joined the team in the spring after earning all-conference honors in soccer during the fall, and averaged 76.44 strokes in three tournaments. A former U.S. Amateur qualifier, Smith can consistently shoot in the mid-to-low 70s.
Like Taddeo, Charlie Kern came on strong at the end of the season to qualify for the CAA Championship squad. He started his career off very well with a +5 performance (73-73-72) at the Marshall Invitational, and worked over the summer at becoming a more consistent scoring threat. Joey Shroyer also impressed the coaches with his improvement over the summer, and will look to play an increased role this season and moving forward. As a freshman, Shroyer’s best performances came in the spring, at the Bash at the Beach and at Kingsmill.
