Courtesy of Brian Beard

After a busy September, the men’s golf team is poised for success in the NESCAC standings this fall and into next spring. The team wrapped up its second invitational of the fall at the Williams Fall Classic two weekends ago, finishing ninth in a competitive 15-team field. Playing the Bowdoin Invitational at home this past weekend, the Polar Bears finished fourth, just four strokes behind winner and top-ranked NESCAC squad Amherst.

At the Williams tournament, the Polar Bears posted scores of 302, 310 and 304 for a total of 916 strokes across three rounds, placing just behind Middlebury (910) and narrowly edging out Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (917).

“[Williams] was our first ever 36 holes in one day,” Henry Mariscal ’28 said. “The main goal was to stay consistent over three rounds.”

The Polar Bears’ top finisher was first-year standout Michael Xiao ’29, who placed 19th overall at +10 (72-80-7). Xiao climbed eight spots on the leaderboard during Sunday’s final round, capping the tournament with an even par 71. Mariscal also delivered a late surge, jumping 14 places on Sunday to finish 30th at 229.

The team’s preparation early in the season focused heavily on putting, with players logging a full 18 holes during Thursday’s practice before the Williams tournament. Mariscal noted that the course played especially tough around the greens, making precision short game work a priority.

“The greens were really demanding,” Mariscal said. “We practiced a lot of putting leading up to the weekend, and it held up okay during the rounds.”

Despite a strong opening round, Bowdoin slipped during the second day of competition. Mariscal admitted the team felt some frustration but emphasized their resilience.

“We were a little disappointed after the first day because we knew we had left some shots out there,” he said. “The mindset was really about bouncing back and trying to stay composed.”

Courtesy of Brian Beard

Over the course of last weekend, the team showed just how close it is to competing with the top NESCAC programs. On Sunday, the Polar Bears even led for a large portion of the day before Amherst surged ahead with a remarkable eagle. Tufts, William and Amherst ultimately overtook Bowdoin, leaving the team in fourth place heading into the final stretch.

Individually, Bowdoin had four players in the top 20—Xiao, Mariscal, Jack Mazur ’29 and Kaiden Hong ’29—underscoring the depth of the lineup. Adam Eskin ’28 reflected on the home invitational’s meaning for the program.

“I don’t think [Coach Jay Durfee] put any more pressure on the guys than needed,” Eskin said. “Having a coach who is really supportive and focused on putting the guys in scenarios where they want to be makes a big difference. At the end of the day, they only lost by two shots. The team total was around 600 shots, and over the course of a tournament like that, it’s just a couple of breaks.”

But the long-term focus lies in the spring season, when the NESCAC championship offers a pathway to nationals—an opportunity the program has never reached.

“The ultimate goal is to win NESCACs in the spring,” Harris said. “If you win, you qualify for nationals, and that’s something Bowdoin has never done before. We came close last year with a fourth-place finish, which was the best in program history. Amherst will be the team to beat.”

With promising underclassmen like Mariscal and Eskin—whom Harris called “the pioneers”—leading the way, the Polar Bears hope to build on their progress.

“We’ve got a young core, but we’re improving every week,” Harris said. “The pieces are there—we just need to keep putting [them] together.”