Alabama
Aggie Invitational
No. 8 Alabama Finishes in Fifth at Aggie Invitational
4/8/2018 6:13:00 PM | Men's Golf
Three Tide golfers close play among top 20 individuals
BRYAN, Texas – The No. 8 Alabama men's golf team finished fifth at the 2018 Aggie Invitational with a team total of 19-over par 883 (289-299-295). The Crimson Tide held the 36-hole lead in a stacked field that featured six teams ranked among the top-10 in the nation, but was unable to hold on over Sunday's final 18 holes.
"We did a lot of good things this week," Alabama head coach Jay Seawell said. "I'm really proud of what we did (on Saturday) under some pretty adverse conditions. We put ourselves in position to win, but we just didn't execute well today. You have to tip your cap to Oklahoma State – they played great and have been playing great all spring.
"We have to learn to play better in that situation and we will. The only way you can learn from it is be in middle of it so I was proud of us being in that position. Our guys learned a lesson that unfortunately doesn't feel all that good at the moment, but we'll be back. We need to shake it off and learn from it and get ready to compete again this weekend at Vanderbilt."
Senior Lee Hodges, who entered the event ranked No. 22 in the nation, led the way for the Crimson Tide with a seventh-place finish, marking his fifth top-10 result of the season and third in UA's last four events. Hodges, who finished with the second-best average in the field on par 4s throughout the 54-hole tournament (4.00), closed play with an even par 216 (75-71-70). It is the fourth consecutive tournament that he has finished at or below par and the fourth straight tournament he's led the Tide.
Senior Jonathan Hardee (73-74-76) and junior Davis Riley (71-77-75) tied for 19th overall at 7-over par 223 on the par 72, 7,088-yard Traditions Club layout. It marked the best finish of the spring for Hardee, who earned his fourth top-20 finish of the season. Riley, who entered the event ranked No. 12 in the nation, earned his seventh top-20 result in eight tournaments this season.
Freshman Davis Shore tied for 26th at 8-over par 224 (73-78-73), while freshman Wilson Furr rounded out the Tide in 42nd place with a 229 (72-79-78).
Top-ranked Oklahoma State (869) secured its seventh consecutive team title, using an 11-under par 277 on Sunday to finish with a seven-stroke win over second place No. 31 Kent State (876). Tournament host and No. 2-ranked Texas A&M (882) tied for third overall alongside No. 12 LSU (882), one stroke ahead of the Tide, who rounded out the top five teams.
Alabama will have a quick turnaround as it prepares for its final regular season tournament when it travels to Nashville, Tenn., to compete at the Mason Rudolph Championship, hosted by Vanderbilt University, on April 13-15.
"We will take a couple of days off to re-energize," Seawell said. "Playing 36 and 18 days, including an 11-hour round of golf on Saturday, we will get some rest the next two or three days and try to get our feet back under us. We will leave Wednesday night and do most of our preparation for Vanderbilt on Thursday when we get there. It's another great opportunity and another great place to challenge for our guys against some great teams."
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Players Mentioned
