Following a three-week break from its last tournament, the 9th-ranked UW men’s golf team will tee off today at the CordeValle Collegiate in San Martin, Calif.

The three-day tournament features one of the most difficult fields this Husky team will face all year, including the 3rd-ranked USC Trojans and the 6th-ranked Stanford Cardinal.

“The competition in this tournament will be very strong,” coach Matt Thurmond said. “Last year’s top three teams will be here along with a couple of other good teams.”

The Huskies are led by juniors Chris Killmer and Richard Lee, whose impressive plays so far this season have garnered them national attention and individual rankings of 20th and 23rd, respectively. As Thurmond pointed out, though, the team’s success thus far has come as a result of all-around solid play.

“Chris has been really good for us so far,” he said. “But really, all six of our guys have been playing well.”

The CordeValle Golf Course is one of California’s best golf courses, but with some rain in the area over the weekend, the conditions could negatively affect some scores.

“It’s playing longer than normal, with some very fast greens,” Thurmond said about the course.

This will be the last tournament of the fall for the Huskies, as they take a three-month winter break before resuming again in early February.

Thurmond said there is no added pressure with the season coming to a temporary halt, but the players know they can bring momentum into the spring with some strong play over these next three days.

With such a strong start to the season, Thurmond is just looking to keep things on track.

“I’m excited about how we’re doing, we’ve played really solidly in the fall,” Thurmond said. “Now everybody really just wants to finish the year on a high note.”

Reach reporter Scott Eisen at sports@dailyuw.com.