SEATTLE – An exciting season awaits the 2018-19 Seattle U men’s golf team, as they look forward to first-time appearances in six total tournaments. Following a long stretch of travel during the regular season, the 2019 Western Athletic Conference Championships provide a more familiar locale, teeing off close to home at the Oakbrook Golf Club in Lakewood, Wash., from April 27-29.
The Redhawks make their debut at the Ram Masters Invitational in Fort Collins, Colo., on Sept. 17-18, then return home for the Husky Invitational in Sammamish, Wash., (Sept. 25-26) after a three-year hiatus from competing in the event. A quick turnaround sends them down to Madera, Calif., for the Nick Watney Invitational (Oct. 1-2), appearing as a team for only the second time at that tournament. Seattle U finishes its fall slate across the country in Little Rock, Ark., at the University of Arkansas Little Rock Invitational on Oct. 22-23, bookending the season with another first-ever entry in a competition.
Spring continues this trend, as the team explores new territory in Newport Beach, Calif., for the UC Irvine Invitational (Feb. 11-12) and Palm Desert, Calif., for the University of Wyoming Desert Intercollegiate (Feb. 22-24). The next two tournaments are just as novel to the Redhawks – the Sacramento State Invitational in Sacramento, Calif., (March 4-5) and the Olympic Club Intercollegiate in San Francisco (March 11-12). Finally, the team returns to more familiar ground, competing at the Oregon Duck Invitational in Eugene, Ore., from March 25-26 and the Seattle U Redhawk Invitational at Chambers Bay in University Place, Wash., from April 2-3. The Redhawks traditionally find great success in the latter tournament, earning top-10 finishes as a team in each of the past four years.
Marc Chandonnet enters his seventh year as head coach in 2018-19. “We have some new opportunities this year for which we are very thankful,” he said. “The host institutions having our team out for their events are first-class, and the golf courses that we will compete on are just as good. It should be challenging but lots of fun for our players.” On his mentality heading into the season, he emphasized two main parts of his focus: “Number one, a positive culture that builds successful habits and number two, the management of our expectations. I’m looking forward to a great year both in and out of the classroom.”
This year the Redhawks bring in two new freshmen, Jack Rahon and Nathan Cogswell. Both competed in the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship, which took place in July. Cogswell also placed in the top 20 at the Washington State Golf Association Men’s Amateur Championship in August.