Cornell golf’s 2021-2022 season is set to tee off this weekend with the annual Alex Lagowitz Memorial Invitational at the Seven Oaks Golf Club in Hamilton, New York. The tournament will host 15 teams for 36 holes on Saturday and the final 18 on Sunday.
The Red has a strong track record of recent success at this tournament. Cornell won the team title at the invitational in 2019, riding on strong performances from Jack Casler ’20 and Charlie Dubiel ’21. The team took second place in 2015, 2016 and 2017.
While the Red is returning to action for the first time since 2020, Dubiel’s graduation during the canceled 2020-21 season leaves a large hole for the team to fill. Jack Casler’s graduation in 2020 left a similar gap, though with Dubiel as the lone incoming senior at the time, it was assumed he would step up to fill the role — but Dubiel’s senior season never came.
Now, an already lean team must replace two of the program’s best players in recent memory, all while coming off a canceled season. Still, the Red is excited to hit the links in varsity action for the first time in nearly two years.
“I can speak for everyone on the team on this one and say that we couldn’t be more excited,” said junior Ben Choe. “For most of us, it’s been nearly two years since we’ve competed for the school, and we’re just counting down the days until Saturday.”
Despite the lack of team action for an extended period, Cornell golf has been gearing up for a return by golfing in individual competitions.
“We’ve competed in individual tournaments all summer, getting our game’s in peak condition for this weekend,” Choe said. “We put in the work for the past two years, and we’re ready to play.”
Though the golf roster currently only lists six members, more additions to the team will be unveiled in the coming weeks.
“I feel very confident about this season,” Choe said. “Our roster is one of the deepest we’ve ever had. Everyone is capable of going low, which is huge to have over the course of a long season. Also, we took a very strong freshman class, who are already showing great signs of potential.”
One of those freshmen is Char Russekoff, who is from Greenwich, Connecticut, and qualified for this weekend’s invitational. Russekoff will play in his very first competition as a Cornell athlete.
“I’m beyond pumped going into my first season,” Russekoff said. “It is a really good group of guys and we have a lot of depth, and I’m just excited to start playing golf and competing. I like to feel like I’ve been preparing my whole life for this.”