The Virginia Commonwealth University Invitational, occurring Sept. 16 and 17, was an unpleasant affair to start the season for Georgetown men’s golf. The Hoyas put out a poor showing, finishing the two-day tournament tied for last place along with Villanova at 25 strokes over par. Old Dominion won the tournament after finishing 28 strokes below par.

The struggles started quickly for Georgetown all throughout the lineup, as the team had already fallen to last place by the end of the first day. The round consisted of two rounds of 18 holes. The Hoyas shot a collective 293 in the first round and a 294 in the second. 

Freshman David Rogers was one of the few glimmers of hope for the Hoyas. Rogers entered Georgetown as the 75th ranked player in the national high school class of 2019. Rogers joins the team as a very highly ranked recruit, placing the burden of high expectations on his shoulders, a weight which did not phase him last weekend. In his first ever college tournament Rogers lived up to the hype, outplaying his upperclassmen teammates. He would end his debut round with a 3-under par 69. Despite his efforts, the team finished the day at 11-over par 587. 

Rogers continued to lead the team into the second day, finishing as the highest placed Hoya at 32nd overall in the tournament of 75. His next closest teammate was fellow freshman Pieter DeGroot, who came in 50th place overall. 

Old Dominion would win the tournament, shooting an impressive 28-under par 836. Trailing closely behind was Virginia Tech at 27-under par 837 and James Madison with a score of 24-under par 840.

The first tournaments for both men’s and women’s golf have seen the Hoyas display few reasons for optimism, as both teams came in last. While both teams may have just stumbled out of the blocks, these losses could point to a more troubling issue within the Georgetown golf program. An early last-place finish means both squads have a lot of ground to recover in their upcoming tournaments. 

However, last season, the men also struggled out of the gates before a handful of strong performances in competitive tournaments later in the season. Georgetown struggled in some of its tournaments against more competitive teams after stumbling from the start, though looking to last season shows that there is still time for the Hoyas to right the ship.

On the horizon for the men’s golf team is the Villanova Wildcat Invitational starting on Monday, Sept. 30, in Malvern, Pa. This event will be a good opportunity for Georgetown to grow from its rocky first tournament.

The women’s next tournament is the Nittany Lion Invitational this weekend at Penn State. This tournament, along with the men’s tournament the following weekend, is a potential turning point for Georgetown. A good finish for either has the ability to significantly ameliorate their slow start and build momentum as the season progresses.