Land o' lakes could be treacherous for men's golf

As the members of the Michigan men's golf team travel to Minnesota today, they are sure to see a lot of water. Their goal for the weekend, however, will be to stay away from it.

Known for its lakes and not its golf courses, Minnesota will nevertheless host the Northern Intercollegiate tournament tomorrow and Saturday. The two-day, 54-hole tournament is the first of the season for the Wolverines.

The team's lineup consists of a proven golfer in junior Michael Harris, followed by four golfers with relatively little experience. Sophomore Scott Hayes played 10 rounds in 1997 and posted a 77.7 average, but junior Mike Affeldt played in just two rounds last season. The other two starters are freshmen Andrew Matthews and Kyle Kilcherman.

Michigan coach Jim Carras described his team as inexperienced, but with the ability to be very competitive.

Harris was the backbone of the team last year, and will look to play the same role this season. He averaged a 72.7 in 1997 and placed first in three tournaments. In order for Michigan to be competitive, however, it will need production from its No. 2 and No. 3 spots.

"Harris is a premier player who provides consistency, but we really need Hayes and Affeldt to play well," Carras said. "I know the two younger guys will make a contribution, but it might not be immediate."

The Wolverines are looking to improve on last season's outcome, in which they averaged 298 strokes and failed to qualify for NCAA tournament play. Carras set a goal of a 295 average in hopes that the team can return to its form during the 1996-97 season, when they qualified for the NCAA finals.

The Northern tournament will give the Wolverines a chance to see some of their conference competition, as eight other Big Ten teams will be in attendance. In fact, this tournament usually serves as a fall prelude to the Big Ten Championships in the spring.

But Carras said he is much more concerned with the play of his own team.

"I want to make sure the kids play with confidence and do not rely on Mike (Harris) to bail them out," he said. "The kids definitely look up to him, but I had the feeling that they were looking up too much. It's not fair to Harris to expect him to play great all the time like he did last season. I wanted to make it clear to the kids that he couldn't always bail them out."

09-17-98