Southern California headed to Albuquerque, New Mexico Sept. 25 and 26 for the William H. Tucker Invitational. The Trojans took on the University of New Mexico Championship Course with an open layout with long and wide fairways. As players approached the green, they had to be wary of the frequent drink, sand and sagebrush before arriving on the well-kept putting surface.

It was home team New Mexico who came out victorious after shooting an impressive -29. Last year’s winner San Diego State placed third with a score of -14. Sophomore Tyler Kowack from San Diego State shot -11 to win the individual competition, but it wasn’t enough to boost his team to number one. 

USC fought well to post a combined 2-under as a team. They started off slow with a first-round score of 291, before turning it around with rounds of 285 and 286 (862 total). Leading the pack for the Trojans were junior Jackson Rivera and sophomore Antonio Safa, each finishing with a score of -1.

As a whole, the team shot the par 3s and par 5s well but failed to score in the par 4s. The team is now focusing on their short game, with chipping and putting being staples of shooting low. Dialing in work around the green is crucial for stacking birdies.   

There is a common theme amongst the USC lineup this year — everyone is new. “So like the blind leading the blind, right?” jokingly said Head Coach Mark Hankins in an interview with the Daily Trojan. Hankins, who was appointed July 9, enters the team with 20 years of experience as a head coach with seasons at Nebraska, Iowa, Michigan State and Texas-Arlington. 

Rivera is the only recognizable face from last year’s lineup; he has been battling an injury the past three months but has returned reborn. He kept a steady pace at the UNM Championship Course, scoring similarly at all three rounds to put up a solid score. 

The rest of the lineup isn’t as familiar to USC fans. This year, Safa transferred in from Missouri, graduate Sam Lape came from Furman and freshman Nicolas Dominguez just entered the school. Senior Krando Nishiba hasn’t played much in the past, but has started to break into the traveling five.

In the Trojans’ first tournament of the season, they faced a star-studded field composed of many teams from the top 20. 

“Last week, we played pretty strong. We were right in there and then just kind of ran out of gas on the third day,” Hankins said. 

This week, the Trojans took a different approach. They were able to keep their games sharp and move up the leaderboard on the final day. It was a battle, but something positive to take going into the next event.

The team feels more comfortable with the return of Rivera and the additional time spent together. If USC continues to build on their performances, a fantastic season awaits them.

The next challenge for the Trojans will be Oct. 13, 14 and 15 when USC travels to Alpharetta, Georgia to play in the Golf Club of Georgia Intercollegiate Invitational. 

“It’s a different kind of golf course. Big trees, large, fast greens. We’ll probably practice for about a week and then we’ll get into qualifying again to see who’s going to travel for us,” Hankins said. 

With eight guys vying for five spots, Hankins is able to create a competitive environment in training. This atmosphere is key for performing better and preparing the team for upcoming tournaments — and the Trojans look to continuously build upon past events as they head into the coming weeks.