Following winter break, head coach Casey Martin held a meeting before the spring season began and delivered a message to his team. With a large contingent of underclassmen, the eighth-year head coach sees a level of potential from this group that is capable of brushing off a rough fall season and succeeding as the spring season approaches. 

“He just said that we have all the talent in the world. It is just where we go from here,” redshirt freshman Max Carter said. “Everybody in college golf has a talent out of high school. It is just what you do with your talent. We just have to be really resilient and take advantage of our potential and the resources that we have.”
In a fall season that both Martin and players alike said was rough, the Oregon men’s golf team finished no higher than sixth in larger formatted tournaments. The team did finish second at the St. Mary’s Invitational, however, and freshman Thomas Lim won the only individual title for the group at the Husky Invitational. As the fall season trudged on, though, the areas needing improvement were evident and Oregon finished in last place at the Gifford Collegiate.  @@checked@@
With eight underclassmen it seems logical to think that this youthful team will bounce back and take a step in the right direction when their first tournament begins on Feb. 5 in Waikoloa, Hawaii. With freshman and sophomores like Brandon McIver, Zach Foushee, Ryann Ree, and Lim who have recorded top-ten finishes individually, the potential is obvious. @@checked@@
Adding to that list, Sulman Raza (sophomore) and Jonathan Woo (junior) have shown that they are every bit as capable as the rest of the bunch. Raza, who struggled with his ball placement for much of the fall season, led the team at the Gifford Collegiate, carding a 79-69-68—216 (+6) and tied for 25th. Also, Woo adds experience and leadership from being on a team that finished third at the NCAA Championships in 2012 and finished ranked 222nd individually after that season. Woo, a native of Singapore, missed two tournaments during the fall while touring there. @@checked@@
With a team stacked full of capable young golfers, the competition will be limitless as the spring season begins, something that Martin feeds off.
“Casey wants everyone fighting for that one and two spots in qualifiers,” Raza, a Eugene native, said.”He doesn’t want that one person who is a standout player to just get (his) way into the tournament. He wants us to still fight for it. He definitely keeps it really competitive when we are playing and even in practice we do a lot of competitive contests and it is important to have that.”
Martin, who won Pac-12 Coach of the Year in 2010, has guided Oregon toward national prominence since his arrival. Appearing in five NCAA Championships in his seven years of coaching, the former professional, who earned his PGA Tour card in 2000, leads a team that could be together for quite some time. With a roster deep in potential, the competition for open spots in tournaments will be open to everyone. @@checked@@
“The thing that is so exciting about this year is that it’s so wide open,” Carter said. “We have seven spots coming up in Hawaii and it is wide open.”
Raza and Carter both feel that Oregon has the ability to win a few tournaments this year and get back to being competitors in a Pac-12 conference that includes five ranked opponents. The outlook looks promising for a young team that will begin competition on Feb. 5.
Follow Justin Wise on Twitter @JWISE25