Freshman Chris Baker again led the ISU men’s golf team last weekend in Memphis as he recorded his second straight top 20 finish. The team was in 16th place after the first two days, but, after an impressive last round climbed the ranks to 11th.

“We played a lot better in the final round. There were tougher pin placements, but we played well,” Baker said.

Baker led the team in scoring, posting scores of 75-76-73-224 and tied for 20th place. Following him was junior Drew Dalziel with scores of 72-78-76-226. Dalziel’s first round score was the Cyclones’ only score of the tournament at par.

“After the first two rounds, we were happy to get 11th, but we know that we’re not an 11th-place team. We need to be more consistent,” Dalziel said.

The Memphis course the team played was no picnic, as there have been numerous PGA Tour events held there in the past.

“The greens are what made that course difficult. They were pretty quick,” Baker said.

An improvement the Cyclones need to make is their play on par 3s. Coach Jay Horton told the team that it was 18 over on par 3s and only 3 under on par 5s.

“I think we’re getting closer; we just can’t let one bad shot effect our whole round,” Baker said.

Though only a freshman, Baker has stepped up and had a consistent fall season as he and Dalziel have often been in the top two of team scoring.

“I hit a couple of balls out of bounds, but I’m really happy with the way that I’m recovering. I’m playing consistent right now,” Baker said. “The biggest thing for me is to play my game and have confidence.”

Dalziel said he isn’t as happy with his game as Baker is at this point in the season.

“I’m not playing where I should be. Right now, I might be playing worse than I did my freshman year,” Dalziel said.

Paul Huddle was the third scorer for the Cyclones, posting rounds of 79-77-76-232. Rodney Hamblin was fourth on the team (76-79-78-233), and Dane Odden was fifth after shooting 80-83-79-242.

With the 11th-place finish, the Cyclones beat in-state rival Iowa which finished 13th on the weekend.

Next for the golf team is the Purina Classic in St. Louis on Oct. 11 to 12. After that it will finish out the fall season in Cedar Rapids at the Big 4 Championship on Oct. 25.