(CSTV U-WIRE) LINCOLN, Neb. -- Mark Pillen may not need an oversized putter shaped like a hockey stick, but he will be the first to admit his short game needs a little work.
After a sluggish first day at Pebble Beach, Calif., Pillen was able to work out a few kinks in his putting to finish 36th in Nebraska's first tournament of the year.
"There's no short cuts to improving in golf," NU coach Bill Spangler said. "He just has to take the time to continue to practice, keep a positive mind-set and work on fundamentals."
Spangler and Pillen did just that. After shooting scores of 78 and 77 on the first day, Pillen was able to tune his short game and rebound with a score of 71 in the last round.
"If he just putts 'average,' then Mark's in the top 10," Spangler said. "His driving stats and his green in regulation were all amongst the best in the field."
After redshirting last year, Pillen is one of only three upperclassmen for the Cornhuskers. With four freshmen on the team, Pillen said he feels it's important to make sure the younger players have a smooth transition into college.
"It's a big change playing 36 holes in one day versus high school events where you're usually just playing 18 holes," Pillen said.
One way Pillen hopes to make an impact on the newest members of the team is leading by example.
"They're seeing that he's going to hit a lot of fairways," Spangler said. "They're just seeing solid golf striking, and they know that when Mark will make some putts, his scores will get a lot better.
"He's worked his tail off quite honestly, and that's the bottom line."
Pillen said he's also putting in his best effort for NU's younger golfers.
"I'm just trying to be a leader as much as I can for the team, and do what I can to work harder," Pillen said. "Hopefully that will affect our scores and help us out down the road."
It's early in the season, but Pillen said he doesn't see any reason the team can't better its standings in the Big 12 Conference and receive another bid to the NCAA regional. "I think it's something that we can definitely achieve," Pillen said. "We'll have to play well in order to do that for how young we are, but it's definitely not out of the question."
