SIUC’s women’s golf team solved one of life’s mysteries on the golf course last weekend in the 1995 Lady Kat Invitational in Lexington, Ky.

Golfer Stacy Skillman said teammate Molly Hudgins figured out the key to life after18 holes in the second round of the tournament.

Molly said she finally figured out the key to life you’ve got to make four and five-foot putts,’ Skillman said.

Advertisement

The team overcame its short game difficulties of previous tournaments to achieve its long-standing goal of shooting an 18-hole round with a score of 320 or under. The Salukis shot scores of 319 in the second and third rounds of the tournament. SIUC ended play in 12th place with a three- round total of 964. The University of Michigan won the tournament with a 904.

Hudgins said improvement in the squad’s short game and slower greens due to harsh rains from Hurricane Opal contributed to low team scores.

Our short game was definitely better, she said. A lot of people made a lot more putts.

Head coach Diane Daugherty said she was pleased with her team’s performance and specifically with second and third round scoring.

Our scores were a lot lower than any other time this season, she said. We had a 320 goal and achieved that goal two times.

Consistency was also a key to SIUC’s low scores. Several Salukis shot 18-hole scores in the 70s, while the remainder of the squad contributed by shooting in the low 80s. Hudgins ended the second round at an even-par 74.

We set a goal before the tournament started to do that, Hudgins said. We finally had a tournament where our four and five players had low scores.

Advertisement*

Hudgins and teammate Kristen Oglesby finished the tournament with 54-hole career-bests of 233 and 242, respectively.

Oglesby said she used the tournament to prove how well she could play.

I knew it was the last chance to go out and prove myself, she said. I just had to keep a positive frame of mind and play how I knew I could.

Hudgins said Oglesby’s hard work all season finally paid off.

We’ve had confidence in her all fall, she said. It just started clicking for Kristen.

The Lady Kat Invitational was a confidence builder for the Salukis’ spring season. Hudgins said it was a boost going into spring.

It gives me more focus and more to work for, she said.

Skillman said the tournament leaves the team ready for the spring season.

It gave us a taste of what we’re capable of, she said. It lets us come back for more in the spring.