University of Tennessee Athletics
NCAA Golf East Regional Preview
May 13, 2003 | Men's Golf
May 13, 2003
VOLS' NCAA REGIONALNOTEBOOK (PDF)
Tennessee makes its fourth straight appearance in postseason play when it competes in the 2003 NCAA Golf East Regional May 15-17 at Auburn's University Club.
The 23rd-ranked Vols received a seeding of seventh in the 27-team regional. The top 10 teams from each of the three regionals will advance to the NCAA Championships May 28-31 at Karsten Creek Golf Course in Stillwater, Okla. The top two individuals whose team is not included among the top 10 also advances.
Head coach Jim Kelson is looking forward to the challenge presented to him and his team.
"We look forward to the challenge of competing in the East Regional on a very challenging course," Kelson said. "Since the SEC Championships, I believe the team is beginning to see its full potential. Our attitudes and overall approach have improved tremendously over the past month. Our players deserve a lot of credit for their improvements they have made. Maintaining a professional approach will be critical to our success in this regional."
The regional consists of eight teams in the Golfweek top 25. The seeding for the 27-team regional is as follows: No. 1 Clemson (No. 1 in Golfweek), No. 2 Augusta State (No. 4), No. 3 Wake Forest (No. 2), No. 4 Florida (No. 5), No. 5 Auburn (No. 12), No. 6 Georgia Tech (No. 15), No. 7 Tennessee (No. 23), No. 8 South Carolina, No. 9 College of Charleston (No. 22), No. 10 Vanderbilt, No. 11 Virginia Tech, No. 12 ETSU, No. 13 Duke, No. 14 Georgia State, No. 15 North Carolina at Wilmington, No. 16 Alabama, No. 17 Jacksonville State, No. 18 Georgia Southern, No. 19 Penn State, No. 20 Charleston Southern, No. 21 Maryland, No. 22 James Madison, No. 23 Rhode Island, No. 24 Yale, No. 25 Binghamton, No. 26 Liberty and No. 27 Jackson State.
Leading the way for the Vols is sophomore David Skinns. Skinns, who was recently named first team All-SEC, carries a stroke average of 71.91. He also has 16 rounds of par or better and six top 10 finishes. He has three second-place finishes at the Coca-Cola Tournament of Champions, the Seminole Intercollegiate and the North Carolina State Intercollegiate.
Playing in the second position for UT is sophomore John-Scott Rattan. Rattan has three top 10 finishes and six rounds of par or better. Going into the regional he has a stroke average of 74.36.
Senior Ian Parnaby will anchor the third spot. Parnaby was recently named second team All-SEC. He has the second-best stroke average on the team of 72.86. Parnaby has 14 rounds of par or better and two top 10 finishes. He claimed his first individual title as a Vol at the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate.
Senior Andrew Pratt and sophomore Ross McGowan round out the team at the four and five positions, respectively. Pratt recently completed his top performance of the season at the SEC Championships, finishing fourth with a 72-69-70--211. He has a stroke average of 75.17 with six rounds of par or better and two top 10 finishes.
McGowan has a stroke average of 74.03 and five rounds of par or better to go with two top 10 finishes.
This marks the 11th appearance in regional competition for the Vols. Last season Tennessee finished tied for 13th-t at the East Regional. The Vols carded a 294-310-300--904.
Tennessee's highest finish in a regional came in 1995 and 1997. The Vols finished tied for seventh both years. The last time UT made an appearance in the NCAA Championships was also during the 1997 season.
Kelson sees all three regionals as very competitive, but believes the East is the toughest this year.
"The committee did a good job of setting it up this year," Kelson said. "In terms of rankings, I feel our regional is perhaps the toughest, as there are four of the top five teams in the nation competing. We just need to play our game and stay focused. If we do what we are capable of doing, I feel we will have an opportunity to advance."
Live scoring will be available for the tournament at www.UTsports.com.
