Feb. 10, 2017
By Zac Ellis
VUCommodores.com
On campus in Nashville – Vanderbilt women’s golf coach Greg Allen has a favorite strategy when it comes to constructing his annual golf schedule: include sunshine wherever possible.
“If you pay close attention to our schedule, I try to schedule a tournament somewhere tropical,” Allen jokes.
Indeed, the Commodores’ next stop – and the kickoff to their spring season – is a trip to Rio Grande, Puerto Rico this weekend for the Lady Puerto Rico Classic. The tournament, hosted by Purdue University, pits Vanderbilt against 14 other teams, including three from the SEC (Arkansas, Georgia, LSU).
The trip to Puerto Rico is a chance for Allen and the Commodore to build off a fall season that saw several bright spots. Vanderbilt ventured to tournaments in Georgia, Illinois, Nevada and North Carolina in the fall of 2016, and Allen liked what he saw from his squad.
“Our mindset from the first team meeting in the fall has been to get one day better,” Allen said. “Looking back at the fall season, I believe we did that. We’re doing our best to avoid getting hung up on the outcome and instead really focusing on the process and taking care of things that are in our control.”
A number of Commodores performed well during the fall season. Junior Alexandra Farnsworth was the team’s best finisher in two tournaments, ending 2016 in a tie for third overall (137, 67-70) in the Las Vegas Collegiate Invitational. That finish was the second-best of Farnsworth’s career, and Allen said he hopes the junior carries that performance into the spring.
“Farney works incredibly hard and has gotten so much better since she arrived as a freshman,” said Allen, who is in his 10th season at Vanderbilt. “She’s mentally and physically in a really good place right now.”
Meanwhile, freshmen Alison Armstrong and Abbey Carlson both carded 68’s in Las Vegas. Allen praised the pair’s evolution from high school prospects to SEC players. “Abbey and Alison have really bought into our culture, and our future is bright with those two,” he said.
But Allen said the Commodores still have room to improve. He singled-out the short game as an area he’ll be watching in Puerto Rico.
“We need to be more consistent week-in and week-out,” Allen said. “Collectively we are a decent ball-striking team, but we must continue to get better around the greens. Assistant coach Aimee Neff has been working hard with the girls in that area and I’m ready to put that practice into tournament play.”
Vanderbilt tees off from Puerto Rico on Sunday, Feb. 12 and will continue through Monday, Feb. 13 and Tuesday, Feb. 14. Check back on VUCommodores.com for results.
