MSU men's golf heads to NCAA regionals

The Michigan State men’s golf team has made it to the NCAA regionals for the first time since 2009 and the first time under fifth-year coach Casey Lubahn.

The Spartans will try to earn a trip to the NCAA finals, something that has only happened twice for MSU since 1971, at the regional in Stillwater, Oklahoma, beginning Monday. The Spartans will need to finish in the top five out of 14 teams at the three-day regional to reach the finals May 27-June 1 in Eugene, Oregon.

“We’ve been building this for a long time," Lubahn said. "We got some guys who are experienced and have known this is where we were going [as a program]. To see them accomplish this, and have a team that could really do some things in the next week, we’re pretty pumped.”

Sam Weatherhead, a junior from Grand Rapids, said it's been a gradual process.

“Coach Lubahn had a really solid foundation of guys coming in when I was making my college decision,” said Weatherhead, who is tied with senior Mitch Rutledge and junior Josh Heinze for the team lead with three top-five finishes this season. “I came in with three others and I knew a couple of them were good players and he already had good players here. We’ve built a pretty solid foundation.”

Getting MSU back to the regionals was a longer process than Lubahn anticipated, but he believes the Spartans have the potential have success next week.

“This is them achieving at the level that I saw them practice at every day for a whole year,” Lubahn said. “I think there’s more in them, I think there’s more to go, I think if we play well this week were going to get out (make the cut to go to the finals).”

In a sport with a season that begins in September and is still going, it is impossible to avoid rough patches, but Lubahn says the Spartans' resiliency has impressed him the most and is a big reason they’ve been so successful.

“We have a number of players who can step up and be the best player that week," he said. "That provides a lot of comfort for me as a coach. Every guy can come and play the best round every day."

As for competing in Stillwater, Lubahn has expectations similar to another successful Spartan coach.

“Like [football coach Mark] Dantonio would say ‘Reach Higher.’ They don’t have to do anything special," he said. "They just have to be a little better than they were the week before and a little better each round and they’ll get out. I really believe that.”

Weatherhead is also keeping level expectations.

“We’re fortunate to be there," he said. "I don’t want to set expectations too high because that puts unnecessary pressure on. But it would be great to make a run and finish in the top five and head on to Eugene (for the NCAA finals)."

The Spartans leave Friday to get a couple of practice rounds at Southern Hills Country Club where the U.S. Open has been held three times.