The Colby golf team took first place on Sunday at the annual Sid Farr Invitational tournament at the Mules' home course, the Waterville Country Club.
The Stableford system, which awards players points based on how well they score relative to par was used to score the tournament.
Golfers receive three points for shooting an eagle, two for a birdie, and one for a par. No points are awarded for a bogey, and a point is deducted for a double bogey.
The Colby Blue squad, comprised of the top five players from the varsity team, combined for 43 points, paced by Tripp Huber '13&'s 14-point performance. The remainder of the Blue squad consisted of captain Harry Smith '12 (nine points), Nathan Ellis '14 (nine), Alex Hymanson '13 (six), and Thomas Lampert '12 (five).
The Bates College White team, consisting of their own top five players, placed second with 36 combined points.
Colby White, the next five players, placed third with a score of ten. Both the Bates Maroon squad and the lone representative from the University of Maine at Machias failed to record scores.
Coach Jim Tortorella was encouraged by the excellent play of his team. He noted the especially consistent rounds of Smith and Lampert. He added that the first-year Ellis "really stepped up" in playing his best round of the year. Colby can always count on Huber for outstanding scores--the sophomore has not scored above 80 in any round this year. His Sunday score of 74 continued that streak.
Tortorella said that, having played five rounds of competitive golf this month in addition to daily practice, the players were tired entering the tournament. The fatigue factor, combined with the influx of new players and general youth on the team, left the coach without many expectations.
But after the team's outstanding performance, he was feeling good about the play he had seen so far and the potential the team has for the future. Ellis added that this consistently strong play has been the norm so far, saying, "As has been the trend this season, we showed the depth of our team today with low scores across the board."
The Mules felt comfortable playing on their home course at the Country Club, but Tortorella was quick to point out that the "home-course advantage [is] sort of a fallacy," claiming that while they did know some advantageous shot placements, the excellent efforts put forth by his golfers were the real determining factor in the win.
The team enters this weekend's New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) tournament at Trinity College in Hartford, Conn. with strong momentum and high hopes of topping last year's strong performance at the same competition.