As if replacing All-Americans Brian Harman and Adam Mitchell, who both graduated in May, wasn’t difficult enough, due to injuries the Georgia men’s golf team will also be without All-SEC performer, senior Hudson Swafford, and expected starter sophomore Will Kropp, when they open their season Friday at the Carpet Capital Collegiate at The Farm in Rocky Face.

With Swafford, who will be out for the entire fall season after undergoing surgery for a torn labrum, and Kropp, who is battling a pinched nerve in his neck and isn’t expected back until early October, the Dogs will turn to redshirt junior Rob Bennett, redshirt freshman TJ Mitchell, and freshman Brian Carter to round out the starting lineup with a pair of All-SEC juniors in Russell Henley and Harris English.

“It’s going to be a lot of new places out there with Harris and Russell being the two veterans, one that hasn’t played very much, and two that have never played a college tournament,” coach Chris Haack said.

Haack added: “We’re young, and we have a lot of inexperience. I’m fully prepared to take some bumps and bruises along the way, but it’s going to be a great learning experience for these guys, and hopefully, they will get more comfortable with more experience in a competitive setting.”

This weekend will be a long time coming for Bennett, who played in three events as a freshman, but has only played in one event since and redshirted last season.”I’m just excited about it,” Bennett said of opening the season in the starting lineup. “I’ve been here three years and only played in four tournaments. I haven’t had that many starts, so I’m just excited to show everyone what I can do.”

After a season last year where the Bulldogs held down the No. 1 ranking for much of the season and made it to the semifinals of the NCAA Championships with a team of returning starters, Haack says he will have to change his coaching style this season to combat his squad’s inexperience.

“Well, it’s obviously different. With that team last year, pretty much all I had to do was roll the balls out and let them play,” Haack said. “Whereas, this year I’m having to go out and help these guys learn and help teach them different shots and reactions of the golf ball. It has put me more in a real teaching mode.”

For Bennett, he knows that it’s impossible to replace two of the most decorated players in Georgia history, but it helps knowing that they were also once in his situation.

“You can’t really replace two guys like that,” Bennett said. “You’ve just got to work hard and step up.”

Haack says he has been impressed with the way Henley and English have stepped up as leaders, taking the younger guys under their wings.

“The thing I’ve been really impressed with Henley and English is both of those guys have stepped up and really become leaders and are really pushing these other guys because they know the way these guys are going to get better is to put them under pressure and under the gun and encourage them as much as they can so both of those guys are doing a terrific job.”

One player particularly benefitting from the third-year starters leadership is Carter, who doesn’t come in with the junior pedigree of some but according to Haack, possesses “arguably as much talent as any player I’ve ever had come into the program”

“Looking up to the upperclassmen, they’re great leaders and they’ve taught me the basics of everything,” Carter said of their tutelage. “I’ve learned from them how to get started and off on the right foot, trying to teach me how to work my way around the course better and work as a team.”