After a winter of snow and cold, the ISU men’s golf team is taking a trip to the Big Easy.

The Cyclones are headed for New Orleans to take part in the Beau Chene Collegiate Classic, kicking off their spring season.

A solid fall campaign and a winter away from the game have the team ready to dive back into competition. The Cyclones captured the team title at the Fairway Club Invitational in Lincoln, Neb., to begin their fall season, giving head coach Jay Horton hope his team can start fast.

“We’re real excited and real prepared,” Horton said. “We came out and played well last year [early in the season]. It’s a good time to practice course management and our thinking and to work on that. [The team is] excited to get off the snow and go play.”

The Cyclones’ fast start and a deep talent pool have Horton optimistic about his team’s chances.

“I think our expectations are always to win. We picked this tournament for a purpose; we’re not going to see a lot of our district competition. For the most part [we’ll be playing] smaller southern schools that, at the peak of our season, we should be able to beat.”

Quickly reaching that mid-season form will be a key for the Cyclones.

“Keeping the form and shape is no problem, it’s just the little touch things, the putting and chipping, [that are hardest to get back],” Horton said.

“These guys play competitively basically nine months of the year, so it’s really only December and January and parts of February that these guys take off.

“They loose a little bit of sharpness, but that’s why we get out here early and go down [south] to practice.”

Iowa State returns plenty of talent for their spring schedule.

“The team is real deep,” Horton said. “Tyler [Swanson] and Jeremy [Lyons] played great in the fall, and I know neither of them played up to their expectations — they think they can play better. Tyler is ready to go; he’s as competitive as there is.

“Drew [Dalziel] came out and played well last spring right away. He’ll be a big key to getting us jump-started, and Clark Smith has been in this before.”

Swanson led the Cyclones with a 72.14 stroke average, notching his highest finish of the year — a tie for second — at the Kansas Invitational. He also made an impact away from the collegiate ranks.

Swanson earned the most points during the Quad Cities Amateur Tour during the summer, securing himself a birth in the PGA Tour’s John Deere Classic. Swanson made the cut in the professional tournament, becoming the first Cyclone golfer to play on the weekend in a PGA Tour event.

Rounds of 71-71-76-73 found him in 64th place, with a seven-over par 291 total. That same weekend his teammates won the Fairway Club Invitational without their top golfer.