By Michael Boriero
The Bishop’s University Gaiters men’s golf team left their mark at this year’s Canadian University/College Championship, finishing in seventh place in the country and within 50 strokes of provincial powerhouse Université Laval Rouge et Or.
The Gaiters qualified for the countrywide tournament last fall after another stellar season under the guidance of head coach Marty Rourke. And it is the best result a Bishop’s golf team has had at a national championship. The key for Rourke was keeping his team sharp in the winter.
“We sat down as a coaching staff and put together what we thought was a training camp that would allow the players to be able to peak and succeed at the optimal time. It was a lot of work and a lot of hours, but it feels so good to be able to do that,” he said in a phone interview.
According to Rourke, while the university has made two recent appearances on the national stage, they have never finished better than 12th place. In their last crack at the tournament, the Gaiters finished near the bottom of the leaderboard. It was a major moment for the squad.
“It was a lot of fun, a lot of work, but a lot of fun on a golf course. It was not an easy walk being in the mountain and then you had rain delays and weather stuff, so all things factored in, but it was a great group that was able to buy in and we’re all pretty proud, I think” said Rourke.
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