A fresh cut of new talent takes the Arizona men’s golf team to Purdue’s Midwest Shootout Tournament tomorrow in West Lafayette, Ind.

Three top freshmen and two upperclassmen will compete in the one-day, 36-hole tournament at Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex.

“”We’re just trying to see what our team is going to be made up of,”” UA head coach Rick LaRose said. “”We picked our five guys who we think are playing the best, and we’re going to go with that.””

Arizona’s top four golfers from last year used up their eligibility after taking the Wildcats to the NCAA West Regional and NCAA Championships.

This fall, Arizona begins ranked No. 25 in the Golf World preseason

College Coaches’ Poll, continuing its streak of 30 consecutive years ranked in the

top-25 poll.

Highly regarded freshmen Roberto Galletti, Tarquin MacManus and Andrew Kelly will make their anticipated collegiate debuts.

“”The freshman are really playing solid right now, and I think we have a really good chance to go up there, do some good and take home the hardware,”” said redshirt senior Creighton Honeck.

A great swing and plenty of international experience is on Kelly’s rǸsumǸ, said Honeck, who plans to take Kelly under his wing.

He added that MacManus brings a solid putter and scramble play on the links.

Both freshmen played with the

Australian Junior National Team.

Galletti, a Nevada-Las Vegas transfer, has heart, passion and always puts the team first, Honeck said.

“”I really have got to be good friends with (Galletti) because he’s all about the team,”” Honeck said.

Better team chemistry is one goal that Honeck and junior Tyler Neal aim on solving before a season of long flights and hotel stays.

“”Last year, we were a little split up,”” said Honeck, who averaged a 73.61 score last season. “”This year, we have a lot of good core guys. We see each other on the course all the time, but we really need to be hanging out off the golf course. We’ve got to get everyone clicking.””

Honeck and Neal occupy the other two spots in tomorrow’s tournament. The team has prepared by playing at local courses such as the Gallery Golf Club and Tucson National where the bent grass greens and long holes make excellent practice preparation for the upcoming competition, Honeck said.

Arizona will be accompanied by 15 other teams, including Michigan,

Missouri and host Purdue, in a tournament in which the squad will rely on its rookies.

“”They need to step up and play like they’re capable of playing,”” LaRose said. “”We don’t have a lot of time. It’s not like we have a lot of other choices.

“”We need our young guys and new guys to play well.””