The beginning of the season held many expectations for the Cyclones’ Men’s Golf team, and rightfully so. Same group of guys, same courses as last year; it was shaping up to be a big step forward for a program that had already seen a lot of development over the last few years.

The first invitational of the season certainly did not go the Cyclones’ way, particularly on the final day. However, there is reason for the team to be optimistic; every golfer seemingly had a day out of the three they could point to and be proud of. Now, it’s just about stringing those good days together into a successful invitational.

That’s what the team will be looking to do this weekend as they travel to Lake Forest, Illinois, to take on a couple of  familiar teams, along with a multitude of new ones. Notre Dame, who was victorious as a team at the Badger Invitational by a significant margin, will be there. Northwestern, the hosts, as well as a few other Big Ten golf teams, will be there competing with the Cyclones for the first time in the young season.

Individual performances are certainly something to build upon, and the team will look to do just that — particularly Tripp Kinney. Kinney shot under par all three days in Madison and shot third best out of everyone competing.

Other performances of note include juniors Lachlan Barker and Ricky Costello, each finding themselves in the top-30. It will take every golfer on the team to compete, but they will certainly look to these three to build on their rounds from last weekend.

It’s worth mentioning the similarities between this season and the one prior in this case because of the opportunity to bounce back quickly.

All eight golfers went to the Badger Invitational last year and then the Windon Memorial soon after. They don’t have any unfamiliar courses to worry about and  no new golfers to help get on the right track; these guys all know what they need to do by themselves and as a team to be successful and not let last weekend affect this one.

It’s also worth noting that the Cyclones found great success as a team last year at this event, placing third. Their performances were highlighted by Kinney, who came two strokes short of being the most efficient golfer of the entire Classic. 

It’s a young season, and one weekend of golf isn’t enough to discourage an experienced Iowa State team. It’s important to put their past in the past as soon as possible, and they have the potential to make forgetting it a lot easier this weekend in Illinois.