Tide Ends Golf Season at NCAA East Regional Saturday
5/17/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
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AUBURN – The University of Alabama men’s golf team ended its 2003 season Saturday, finishing 20th at the NCAA Division I Men’s East Regional here. The finish capped the first season for new coach Jay Seawell who in his first year with the Crimson Tide advanced his team to postseason play, produced an all-conference golfer, five academic all-conference golfers and had three top four team tournament finishes.
The top 10 team finishers here advance to the NCAA team finals which begin May 27 in Stillwater, Okla., where the field will include 30 teams, 10 from each of the three regionals held this past weekend. Clemson emerged as the champion from the East, besting the regional field of 27 with a 25 under par 54-hole finish. The Tigers shot 285-277-277/839 to finish nine strokes better than Georgia Tech which was 16 under par at tournament’s end (848). Florida was third (859), followed by Tennessee (863), Duke (866), Wake Forest (868), Augusta State and South Carolina (873), Vanderbilt (875) and Auburn (877) which hosted the regional on its home Auburn University Club course.
The remaining field, in order of finish, included, at 11th, Georgia Southern (878), East Tennessee State (886), Charleston and Georgia State (887), North Carolina Wilmington and Jacksonville State (888), Penn State (896), Rhode Island (900), Virginia Tech (904), Alabama (310-298-303/911), Maryland (914), James Madison and Binghamton (917), Liberty (930), Charleston Southern (933), Yale (941) and Jackson State (987).
Georgia Tech’s Troy Matteson bested the field of 141 golfers with his 15 under par scorecard that included rounds of 68-67-66/201 on the par 72 course. VCU’s William Ted Brown, competing as one of the invited individuals seeking one of the two individual spots that would advance to Stillwater, finished tied at second at eight under, 208, with Clemson’s Gregg Jones who advances with his Clemson team. Also advancing unattached will be South Alabama’s Ryan Gildersleeve who finished fourth at seven under (209).
Alabama’s best finish in the regional came from Lars Brovold who shot eight over for the tournament, 76-72-76/224. He finished tied at 64th. Austin Hynson finished tied at 83rd (77-77-73/227) shooting one over in the final round Saturday. Wesley Pate finished tied at 92nd (79-75-75/229). Clint Provost carded 79-75-79/233 to finish tied at 106th, and freshman Lance Walker finished tied at 117th in his first trip to nationals. He carded 78-76-82/236.
