University of Tennessee Athletics
University of Tennessee
UNF Collegiate Championship
Vols Finish Sixth at Mercedes-Benz Collegiate Golf Championships
February 10, 2004 | Men's Golf
Feb. 10, 2004
JACKSONVILLE, Fla.--The Tennessee men's golf team closed out the Mercedes-Benz Collegiate Championship with a sixth-place finish. For the tournament, the Vols carded a 303-299-289--891. The tournament, which is considered the first major event of the spring, was held at Sawgrass Golf and Country Club (par 72, 6,985 yards).
Head coach Jim Kelson was pleased with his team's effort in such a talent-laden tournament.
"I think we played well," Kelson said. "We had a good, solid tournament and hopefully this will be a turning point for us. This tournament proved if we play well we can play with the top teams in the country. It was a real positive experience and I think as a team we gained a lot of confidence."
Junior David Skinns led UT with a 73-69-76--218, tying him for ninth place. Skinns opened the final round on the front nine with a bogey on the second hole. From there he collected par through the ninth to make the turn at 1-over-par. The back nine saw Skinns birdie the 11th hole, followed by two bogeys on 13 and 14 and a birdie on 15. Skinns then had a double-bogey on 17 and a bogey on 18 to end the round with a 76.
Next for the Vols was junior Ross McGowan. For the tournament, McGowan finished tied for 15th with a 73-79-69--221. McGowan started play with an even-par 36 on the front nine that included birdies on holes four and eight, as well as birdies on three and five. The final nine saw McGowan par the first four holes, before birdies on three of the final nine holes. The birdies occurred on 14, 16 and 18 for his final round score of 69.
John Scott Rattan continued his climb after a rough first day with a final round score of 71 to go with a 79-73 for a total of 223, tying him for 23rd. Rattan, a junior, opened with a rocky front nine, that included bogeys on three and four, birdies on six and seven and a double-bogey on nine to make the turn with a 2-over-par 38. The final nine saw him go mistake free, recording birdies on 11, 15 and 18 to go 1-under for the day.
Freshman Jonathan Mount was fourth in Vol scoring, finishing tied for 45th with a 78-78-73--229. Mount opened the front nine with a birdie on four, followed by a bogey on five and a double-bogey on seven. He then regrouped with a birdie on eight and made the turn with a 1-over-par 37. The final nine saw Mount display consistency, making par on each hole to end the round with a 1-over-par.
Rounding out the Vol contingent was sophomore Lloyd Campbell, who finished 86th with an 89-80-76--245. The final round saw Campbell open with bogeys on holes two, four and six, before a birdie on seven to make the turn with a 2-over-par 38. After recording bogeys on the 11th and 13th holes, he rebounded to par the final five holes of the tournament.
South Carolina ran away with the team championship, firing a 288-289-284--861 (3-under-par). No. 13 Oklahoma State and No. 1 Florida were 27 strokes back in a tie for second. The Cowboys fired a 308-289-291--888, while the Gators had a 299-300-289--888. The second-ranked Clemson Tigers and 14th-ranked Texas Longhorns tied for fourth with scores of 889 to round out the top five teams.
"In my 13 years of coaching this is by far and away the most lopsided victory I have ever seen," Kelson said. "Under the playing conditions, the golf course and the caliber of teams, South Carolina did a remarkable job."
Other Golfweek Top 25 teams to finish the tournament include No. 24 Kentucky (898) in eighth, No. 3 Georgia (900) in 10th, No. 22 Northwestern (906) in 12th, No. 8 Augusta State (911) in 13th, No. 16 Duke (914) in 14th and No. 10 North Carolina (915) in 16th.
Jason Hartwick claimed medalist honors in the individual portion of the tournament with a 71-73-67--211. Eirik Johansen of South Carolina finished second with a 71-76-67--214, while Gregg Jones of Clemson and Jake Thompson of South Carolina finished tied for third with scores of 215.
The Vols return to action, March 1-2, when they travel to Los Angeles, Calif., for the Cleveland Golf Collegiate Championship at North Ranch Country Club. Last season UT made its first appearance in the tournament, finishing tied for eighth with a 287-293-288--868.
Players Mentioned
