Photos by Chris Squier
In the final tune-up before the conference tournament, it was a freshman and senior who led the Point Park men’s golf team to a strong finish in the tightly contested Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) Spring Invite.
CMU hosted the six-team invitational April 14 at the Longue Vue Club in Penn Hills Township. It was a one-day tournament in which the top five teams were separated by a mere six strokes.
“You really don’t realize the score until after the round,” said senior Eric Poplowski in a telephone interview. “But it makes you focus on what you could in the next tournament because you didn’t win. We focus on the mistakes and what we can do to fix them.”
The Pioneers came into the invite fresh off a third place finish at the Edward Jones shootout April 11-12 at The Links at Spring Church. Though the team finished third, the Pioneers felt the overall play could have been better. The team looked forward to the quick turn-around and a chance at redemption.
“Tournaments are usually seven days apart,” said freshman Max Kaminsky in a telephone interview. “After the last tournament, we wanted the chance to redeem ourselves. We played decent on the weekend, but we were excited to have this little redeemer.”
The team was once again led by the strong play of senior Collin Holmes. In the Edward Jones Shootout, Holmes posted rounds of 74-75, which was the best individual score for the Pioneers. This effort was also good enough to secure a tie for the seventh best individual score at the tournament.
“It’s just practice,” Holmes said in a telephone interview. “I’ve been hitting the course hard. I just got fit for a couple new clubs. I was getting too strong for the old ones. It’s got to contribute to my better play.”
At the invite, Holmes followed up with a score of 73. This score was good enough for a sixth place tie for individual score, and along with that, his excellent play of late earned him Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (KIAC) Golfer of the Week honors for the week.
“It’s cool, but I’m going out there doing what I’m supposed to be doing,” Holmes said. “It’s all about senior leadership and setting the tone. I have more motivation and confidence to win it.”
The recent positive play from Holmes is nothing new, and something head coach Gabe Bubon has grown accustomed to seeing.
“Collin’s done it from his first year to this year,” Bubon said in a telephone interview. “He’s someone I can really rely on. Surprisingly, he hasn’t won a tournament in his career, but he’s my best golfer. He’s been the number one man the last two or three years.”
The Pioneers were also bolstered by the play of Kaminsky, who matched Holmes with a 73 of his own.
“I know I can go out and shoot well, but I have to step in the moment,” Kaminsky said. “I know I have to post low scores because I’ve played well, but I can’t put too much pressure on myself.”
Poplowski helped the cause with an 82, and he feels the team has finally began to reach its stride.
“We had a short spring, but we improved with each tournament,” Poplowski said. “We fix the mistakes so they won’t happen again. We’re going to put it all on the line. We have gotten better as a team and individuals.”
The Pioneers will lay it all on the line this weekend at the KIAC Tournament at the Liberty Country Club in Liberty, Ind.
