April 26, 2002
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- With two tournaments remaining in the 2002 spring season, Northwestern's men's golf team has some work to do if it wishes to earn a berth in the NCAA Central Regional Championships.
The Wildcats can take a big step toward improving their postseason hopes this Saturday and Sunday at the Bruce Fossum/Taylor Made Invitational at Forest Akers West Course, located on the campus of Michigan State University. Nine of the 11 Big Ten teams (no Penn State or Purdue) are participating as well as several other key regional foes.
"We're on the fence, so to speak, with regards to making the regional tournament," said Head Coach Pat Goss. "We need a strong showing this weekend, as well as next."
Next week, the Wildcats head to Iowa City for the Big Ten Championships, scheduled for Friday through Sunday, May 3-5.
In addition to the nine Big Ten schools, Eastern Michigan, Kent State, Notre Dame, Toledo, UT-Arlington and Xavier are also competing in this weekend's tournament. Starting at 8:30 a.m., two rounds (36 holes) will be played Saturday. The final round will be played at 9 a.m. Sunday. Both days begin with shotgun starts.
Northwestern is paced by sophomore Tom Johnson (Fair Oaks, Calif./Del Campo), who averages 72.61 strokes per round. He has four top-10 finishes this season. Johnson is ranked 47th in the latest Golfweek/Sagarin poll.
Fans can follow this weekend's action, as well as a live third-round leaderboard, on the internet at Bruce Fossum/Taylor Made Invitational