Alabama
Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate
Alabama Men’s Golf Finishes in Fifth at Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate
10/4/2016 7:51:00 PM | Men's Golf
Lee Hodges leads Crimson Tide with a third-place finish
VESTAVIA HILLS, Ala. – Behind the play of junior Lee Hodges, the 24th-ranked Alabama men's golf team carded the third-lowest team score of the day at 4-over par 284 to vault three places and finish in fifth overall at the 2016 Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate on Tuesday afternoon at Old Overton Club. Hodges, who transferred from UAB this past summer, led the way for the Crimson Tide, as he finished in third overall with a 54-hole total of 4-under par 206.
Alabama finished the 31st annual Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate with a team score of 18-over par 858 (289-285-284). It marked just the third time in the last 11 years that the Crimson Tide did not win the event.
"We are just trying to get better with baby steps," Alabama head coach Jay Seawell said. "We are getting out of the macro and into the micro, getting them more into the day to day and shot to shot. I think our guys did a really good job. I think they are starting to show signs of wanting to compete, and not getting down on themselves or trying to hard when things aren't going their way. I am proud they didn't hang their heads, and I think they ran through the tape which is all you can ask for as a coach. We still have a lot of work to do. We are a pretty good way from being on top of the leaderboard but, today especially, was a nice step forward."
Auburn, ranked No. 3 in the nation entering this week's event, captured the team title with a score of even par 840, narrowly defeating No. 42 UNLV (841) by one stroke. Baylor, ranked 21st in the Bushnell Golfweek Coaches Poll, finished third with an 847, while UAB (856) placed fourth overall.
Hodges improved his score in each round throughout the two day event. After opening the tournament with an even par 70, the Elkmont, Ala., native carded a 1-under par 69 in the second round and bettered that with a 3-under par 67 in Tuesday's final 18 holes. His third-place finish marked the seventh top-five and 11th top-10 finish in Hodges' career, and his first for both while at Alabama. He also has now collected a total of 16 rounds in the 60s for his career.
Hodges finished three strokes behind John Oda of UNLV, who carded a 7-under 203 to claim medalist honors. Charlotte's Conor Purcell was second at 6-under 204.
Junior Steven Setterstrom tied for 24th overall, marking his third career top-25 tournament finish. After carding an opening round 79, the Mobile, Ala., native matched his career-low round of 67 and followed that with a 1-over 71 on Tuesday to finish the event at 7-over par 217.
Sophomore Davis Riley tied closed the tournament with a 10-over 220 (71-76-73) on the par 70, 7,204-yard Old Overton Club course. Junior Tyler Hitchner tied for 41st with a 222 (74-75-73), while senior Robby Prater rounded out the Tide in 46th overall at 224 (74-74-76).
The Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate began back in 1986 and is named for the most successful professional golfer in Crimson Tide history. Pate currently plays on the Champions Tour and is active in the team selection for the tournament. He was on hand Tuesday to present the trophy to both the winning team and medalist recipient.
Alabama will return to action at the end of the month when it travels to Pebble Beach, Calif., where the Tide will compete at the Cypress Point Classic host by Stanford University on Oct. 31-Nov. 1.
"The next two or three weeks we need to compete to find the back end of our lineup," Seawell said. "We have to get those guys playing a little bit better. We need to correct our issues. We have three weeks, which is good, so we can go to work and maybe work a little bit more on some technique things and some physical things that you cannot normally do when you go back to back. We are looking forward to that, it's going to be a great trip with match play, so it's going to teach a little different. We are excited about that, and we get to go to the west coast, play on a terrific golf course (Cypress Point Golf Club in Pebble Beach, Calif.) in a place known for golf, so we are looking forward to the opportunity."
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Players Mentioned
