Golfweek

LINCOLN, Calif. – The final round here in the West Regional features a pairing that includes a couple of teams who have contrasting backgrounds. Northern California rivals Stanford and UC Davis will begin the final round at 9:00 a.m. off the No. 1 tee.
 
The team carrying the red bags (Stanford) will be trying to place within the top eight and advance to the national championship for the 20th consecutive season. The team with the blue bags (UC Davis) is trying to advance to the Division I national championship for the first time ever. The Aggies, ranked No. 52 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings, are in their first year of postseason eligibility.
 
And one more thing, the team that is in eighth place and rounds out this threesome is Tulsa, a school with a little bit of women’s golf tradition.
 
- Lance Ringler
Posted May 9

ATHENS, Ga. – Sometimes looking the part is good enough. Forget about the 81 Georgia junior Mallory Hetzel posted today, the woman was stylin’.

Kinda.

Hetzel donned a camouflaged UGA hat and dark sunglasses, and combined with her steady march up and down the fairways that would have made a West Point general proud, I was slightly nervous talking to her after the round.

“I just wake up in the morning and put my stuff on,” Hetzel said. “If people are scared, they’re scared.”

Added coach Kelley Hester: “She’s the intimidator of women’s golf, and she takes pride in that.”

– Dan Mirocha
Posted May 9

ATHENS, Ga. – Best smile of the East Regional so far goes to Furman’s Corrine Carr. After her 3-under 69 yesterday – the best score of her college career – the sophomore from Pinehurst, N.C., couldn’t wipe the ear-to-ear grin off her face.

“I finally came out here with the right attitude,” Carr said. “Normally my putting is not good, but I got over it today.”

No word yet if a toothpaste commercial is in the works.

– Dan Mirocha
Posted May 9

LINCOLN, Calif. – There was a first for me today at the NCAA Women’s West Regional in Lincoln, Calif. I went to a golf tournament and a dog show broke out. Well, not exactly. The dog show had been planned. But I did journey over to watch the canines in the talent show.
 
The interesting part was that the dog party took place no more than a lob wedge away from the 18th green, where the morning wave of teams was playing. The only thing that separated Piper the Poodle and the players in the morning wave was a lateral water hazard.
 
Southern California finished the day with a 5-under total and the lead, but the best act of the day might have been Macy (not sure what breed) impressing all by playing a little piano and jumping through a flowered hula-hoop!
 
Good job Macy!

– Lance Ringler
Posted May 8

ATHENS, Ga. – I thoroughly enjoyed my time at the University of Minnesota. But the older I get, the less I miss living the college life.

Until 45 minutes ago.

I just arrived in Athens and took a long walk from my downtown hotel, past the college bars and restaurants, and through the University of Georgia campus. In a word: Wow.

Is there any place better to be on a spring day than a college campus? From the kids taking pictures in their caps and gowns, to the mammoth football stadium ... the atmosphere at this place is fantastic. And there’s not even that many people on campus. (Don’t quote me on this, but I’m guessing finals were last week.)

Looking forward to my long weekend here in Bulldog Country. Word is there’s a golf tournament just down the road.

– Dan Mirocha
Posted May 7

Whitney Myers, No. 27 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings, will not play for Florida in the NCAA East Regional. The senior from East Berlin, Pa., who tied for seventh at the SEC Championship, was ruled academically ineligible.

“Whitney did not meet the expectations and standards of being a student-athlete for the program but is working toward those,” said Bill Martin, Florida’s sports information director for women’s golf.

This is a big blow to the fourth-ranked Gators, who are coming off their first SEC title since 1995.

Expect to see Nicole Schachner, sister of Duke’s Michael Schachner, to replace Myers in the Gator lineup.

– Asher Wildman
Posted May 7

Just got off the phone with someone from the Tennessee sports information office, and learned that things will be even tougher for the Vols to make it out of women’s regionals.

Angela Oh has left the team. This comes after she tied for 40th at SECs. The issue seems to be hush-hush and her departure is not because of an injury.

One player that is injured and still playing for the Lady Vols is Nicole Smith. The long hitter off the tee failed to qualify for the team that competed at SECs, but coach Pavon is putting her in the lineup for regionals. Nicole is battling a right shoulder injury that has bothered her in the past.

Good Ol’ Rocky Top is looking kind of down right about now…

– Asher Wildman
Posted May 6

Tomorrow kicks off the most exciting two week stretch in college golf - NCAA Regional play.

First, May 8-10 it's the women playing at three different sites with 21 teams trying to grab a top eight finish to advance to the national championship. Then May 15-17 the men will also be at three different sites with 27 teams at each competing for a top 10 finish to move on.

With the change to gain entry into the postseason there is no doubt these six tournaments will be the strongest and deepest fields we have ever seen in regional play and anything could happen.

This is going to be fun!

– Lance Ringler
Posted May 7

When looking at the fields for the men and women NCAA Regional tournaments ,they match up exactly with what the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings have.

The “magic number” for the women was 52, for the men it was 73. If a team was ranked on the “magic number” or inside of that number, that team was granted an at-large bid. Of course, on the men’s side you had to have a winning head-to-head record (a.k.a. the .500 Rule). There were four teams who did not qualify this year. Looking back to last year before the rule was a reality, there were nine that would have been out.
 
How much easier is this new format than having to deal with district allocations? And how much more balanced are the fields? And how much more competitive is it going to be?
 
The most exciting two weeks of college golf is here – NCAA Regionals!
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted May 5

The final “magic number” is 73. Eastern Michigan knocked off Kent State taking a spot away from the at-large bids.
 
There will be a total of 81 teams in three regionals. Of those 81 teams, 12 earned a spot only after winning their league’s AQ. This reduces the number to 69, however Arizona, Northwestern, Vanderbilt and Minnesota did not meet the .500 Rule, pushing the number back to 73.
 
Now it’s up to the NCAA Committee to decide if a team is a top-73 team and in the postseason.
 
We all learn tomorrow!
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted May 4
 

One day remaining before the end of the conference championships and Eastern Michigan is trying to make it back-to-back titles with a victory at the Mid-American Conference Championship.
 
A lot of eyes will be on the final round action in the MAC to see if Kent State, which has a four-shot lead with only 18 holes remaining, will wrap up the automatic bid or if Eastern Michigan will take a spot away from the national at-large field.
 
Teams on the bubble and probably watching: (according to Golfstat) Minnesota, Oklahoma, Virginia, Kansas State, Southern Miss and Western Carolina. (According to Golfweek/Sagarin): Washington, Western Carolina, Oklahoma, Kansas State and South Alabama.
 
- Lance Ringler
Posted May 3

Charlotte’s Trevor Murphy wasn’t the only player to Monday qualify for a tour event this week. Tulsa senior Leisl Hasbrouck advanced into the LPGA’s SemGroup Championship in Broken Arrow, Okla.

Hasbrouck, No. 308 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings, shot 81-82 in tough conditions at Broken Arrow Country Club. Hasbrouck was coming off her best finish of the year – a second-place showing at the Conference USA Championship. No. 34 Tulsa will play next week in the NCAA Division I Women’s West Regional.

“This was a huge test for me to see if I was ready to play at the next level,” Hasbrouck said after the qualifier. “Today all my hard work paid off.”

– Sean Martin
Posted May 2

Long Beach State has named a new head coach. Bill Poutre, who has spent the last four years at the University of Hartford, will replace Bob Livingstone, who resigned after 14 years guiding the 49ers golf program.
 
What’s interesting about this hire is Poutre was born, raised and attended college on the East Coast. Moving across country to coach college golf in California tells me one thing: Poutre wants to be competitive.
 
From what I know, Poutre is very charismatic, hard-working and has the energy to give the program a chance to be successful. But will the athletics administration at Long Beach State provide him with the necessary means to put Long Beach State on the road to the postseason?
 
It’s a good hire and one that will be fun to follow.
 
- Lance Ringler
Posted May 2
 

Monday is selection day for the men. What can we predict the “magic number” to be?
 
With 81 teams making it to the postseason and 28 of those earning a spot via winning their league championship, that leaves 53 at-large spots. Twelve of those teams winning conferences would not be ranked well enough nationally to get an at-large spot pushing the number to 65. However, toss out Arizona, Northwestern and Vanderbilt (below .500 teams) and even Minnesota, which would be on the bubble based on national ranking. That adds four more spots and pushes the number to 69.

But, add Colorado State (MWC) and Marquette (Big East) as unexpected conference winners. This adds two and makes it 71 ... that’s assuming Kent State wins the MAC and Charlotte wins the A-10.
 
Wow, top 70 in the country and better than a .500 record ... that’s a lot of room to be good or just better-than-average.
 
- Lance Ringler
Posted May 1

Charlotte senior Trevor Murphy was impressive in the first round of the PGA Tour’s Wachovia Championship, shooting 1-under 71 at Quail Hollow Country Club. Murphy, No. 170 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings, Monday qualified for the tournament, which conflicts with the Atlantic-10 Championship Friday-Sunday at Orange County National in Winter Garden, Fla.

This is the second consecutive year that a player’s foray onto the Tour has conflicted with his team’s conference championsnhip. Colt Knost Monday qualified for last year’s Byron Nelson, then shot 64 in the second round to make the cut. His team played without him for the first round of the Conference USA Championship, which was the same day as the Nelson’s final round. Knost arrived for the final two rounds of the C-USA and shot 71-74 to help SMU finish fourth.
 
Charlotte, the sixth-ranked team in the country, should still easily win their conference championship without Murphy in the lineup; no other A-10 team is ranked in the top 120 in the country.

Murphy’s absence will allow Will Golden, a freshman from Auburn, Ala., to make his first appearance in the starting lineup. He did play the Palisades Collegiate and John Hayt Collegiate as an individual, finishing T-34 and T-69, respectively.

“He’s gotten better all year,” Charlotte head coach Jamie Green said about Golden. “He’s gotten more comfortable, and the truth is he’s gone toe-to-toe with our top players in some qualifiers. I’m excited for him to play in this arena and represent the university in the Atlantic-10 Championship.”

Sounds like a win-win situation. Murphy’s experience at difficult Quail Hollow Country Club should make the postseason look much easier by comparison, while Golden will get to see what life is like in the starting lineup.

– Sean Martin
Posted May 1

What a day in college golf! I had several e-mails and phone calls about the happenings taking place out West, and not just at the Pac-10 Championship.
 
One phone call I got from a coach in the Western Athletic Conference went like this:
 
Me: “Hello?”
 
Coach: “Troy Merritt is really good.”
 
Enough said. Merritt won the WAC in extremely tough conditions, where there were high winds, hard and very fast greens, and high rough at Cinnabar Hills Golf Club in San Jose, Calif. The Boise State senior shot 7-under 209 to win by 10 shots! Merritt has now won his past five events, and make that seven wins in 12 starts this year.
 
At the Pac-10 Championship, Washington is postseason eligible and Arizona is not. The Huskies needed to finish seventh or better and thanks to a 4-over finish on the last hole by Oregon, they finished seventh to finish the year at 71-70-3. Now the question is will Matt Thurmond’s squad finish the year ranked high enough nationally to get to play in the West Regional they are hosting?
 
Arizona needed to finish fifth or better and came up two shots short after making a big run early in the day. The Wildcats had it to double digits under par, but settled for a 4-under round and a sixth-place finish. Arizona finishes the year at 83-85-2.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted April 30
 

I will continue to say that I have no strong opinion either way when it comes to the .500 Rule. Sure, it has given exposure to mid-majors and a chance for lower Division I teams to see some of the elite programs in college golf. But, have we really seen many upsets? Maybe we will once this rule has had a chance to cycle through with recruiting, but, one thing is for sure, the rule has made the last few weeks of the regular season more popular.
 
How many folks around the country would have been paying attention to the Cavalier Classic? With North Carolina State, Augusta State and Virginia all needing wins to be postseason eligible there were many wanting to see these results.
 
North Carolina State and Augusta State did what was needed as did tournament host Virginia. Not only did Virginia win the 21-team, 36-hole event to help them into the top 70, but also above. 500. At the end of the fall season Virginia was ranked No. 87 and had a head-to-head won-loss record of 19-30-1. Now Virginia ranks No. 65 with a won-loss record of 69-58-1.
 
The result here: the top three teams all needed head-to-head wins and schools such as Seton Hall, James Madison and Delaware got a chance to play them, and those three all lost.
 
I like the fact that the lesser-know programs get a chance, but it will probably take a few years before we really see the rule pay dividends to these programs.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted April 30

The Meadow Club is playing tough at the Pac-10 Championhship, but four players got a treat in the second round. Stanford’s Steve Ziegler, UCLA’s Erik Flores, Washington State’s Jordan Mason and Oregon State’s Diego Velasquez all aced the 150-yard 11th hole in the second round.

Velasquez’s ace came in the middle of a crazy 11-hole stretch. He made no pars, but was only 1 over par from Nos. 7-17.

Try to keep this straight. He made double bogey on No. 7, bogeyed the next three holes, aced No. 11, bogeyed No. 12, made birdie on No. 13, bogeyed the 14th, then made birdie on Nos. 15-17.

If you’d like to see it for yourself, click here.

– Sean Martin
Posted April 30

Just because today was selection day for women's college golf does not mean I don't have a top five items from the last seven days for you all.
 
5. The Marquette (Big East) and Colorado State (Mountain West) men's teams along with the Fresno State (WAC) women's team all won their conference championships and earned their leagues' automatic bids into regional play. Each of the three teams had to win to get in and had to beat teams that were locks to advance.
 
4. All you have to do is be realistic about what kind of team you think you may have or tweak your schedule one or two events – maybe three if needed – and if you are good enough to be a top-70 team and defeat half the teams you play you will be in the postseason. Give credit to Augusta State's Josh Gregory and North Carolina State's Richard Sykes for doing just that. This past weekend Augusta State and North Carolina State participated in the Cavalier Classic. ASU was second and NC State was third, helping both teams to a top-50 ranking and a winning head-to-head record.
 
3. Right now only Vanderbilt is out. Unless of course, head coach Tom Shaw can arrange an event that can push his 70-77-5 head-to-head record above .500. The Commodores are ranked No. 47 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings - more than good enough to get an at-large bid.
 
2. Southern California won the Pac-10 or should I say lapped the field a few times? The Trojans won the conference title for the first time since 1989 and moved into the No. 1 spot in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings for the first time this year. Duke is second and UCLA is No. 3.
 
1. I set the "magic number" at 52 for the women and the top 52 teams in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings all got the nod from the NCAA today. That's just fantastic! Now you know what you need to do. Now we will focus on the men's "Magic Number" ... more on that later this week.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted April 28

It seems someone messed up at the NCAA. At No. 184 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings, Coastal Carolina’s Araceli Felgueroso earned an individual berth into the postseason. Felgueroso is a fine player, who finished T-13 as an individual in last year’s East Regional and almost advanced to the NCAA Championship. The problem is, 21 players who will not participate in this year’s postseason are ranked ahead of her, most notably Princeton’s Susannah Aboff.

Aboff, who won the Ivy League Championship by 11 shots, is No. 62 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings.

Three players on San Francisco are ranked better than No. 184, as are two players on Eastern Michigan. Neither team made the tournament, though San Francisco’s Danielle Cvitanov earned an individual berth.

– Sean Martin
Posted April 28

The final women’s conference championships ended today and they held true to form with Purdue winning the Big Ten, Oklahoma State winning the Big 12 and Kent State winning the MAC. Eleven teams will earn a ticket to the postseason that would not have been an at-large selection. With 63 teams in the regional fields and 11 conference winners earning their league's AQ that would not have gotten in - that leaves 52 spots.

If a team is in the top 52 in the nation - it should be extending its season, correct? We will find out tomorrow. Monday is selection day for women’s college golf and 63 teams will learn where they are headed for regional play.
 
- Lance Ringler
Posted April 27

Like San Diego did to start the conference championship season, Colorado State did it again today. The Rams, No. 85 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings, took an at-large spot away from the field by pulling off the upset to win the Mountain West Conference.
 
UNLV, San Diego State and maybe TCU were expected to battle for the MWC title, but it was Jamie Bermel’s squad that rallied during the final round to win the school’s first MWC championship. The Rams, with no seniors in their lineup, posted the day’s best and only under-par round with a 6-under 278.
 
When No. 85 can knock off No. 15 and No. 33 ... that’s what I call “April Madness.”
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted April 26

Another team that needs a good finish at their conference championship in order to be postseason eligible is Northwestern. Pat Goss’ team went 3-10 last weekend finishing 11th out of 14 teams at the Boilermaker Invitational forcing his Wildcats to have to finish third or better to get to .500. A third-place finish would give Northwestern a 71-71-0 head-to-head record. 

Earlier this week, the Jack Nicklaus Award watch list was announced. While I have no real problem with doing this, lets be realistic about how many players can actually win this award. FIVE.
 
I now give you the Lance Ringler watch list:
 
1. Rickie Fowler, Oklahoma State
2. Michael Thompson, Alabama
3. Jamie Lovemark, USC
4. Kevin Chappell, UCLA
5. Joel Sjoholm, Georgia St.
 
- Lance Ringler
Posted April 9

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. – Mission Hills Country Club is 3,000 miles from and 50 degrees warmer than the site of Amanda Blumenherst’s last tournament. The Duke junior and No. 1 player in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings finished second Sunday at the Bryan National Collegiate before departing for the Kraft.

“It was so cold, I could’ve sworn I saw snow,” Blumenherst said on the putting green after her first-round 73. “Now I haven’t seen a cloud in four days. It’s weird swinging in one layer.”

Blumenherst, who finished T-10 at the 2006 U.S. Women’s Open, is making her Kraft debut. She made birdie on two of her final three holes to shoot 73 Thursday.

– Sean Martin
Posted April 3

“Pro Player” vs. “College Player.”
 
It does not happen very often, but can happen in the Georgia Cup - the annual match between the reigning U.S. Amateur champ and the regining Bristish Amateur champ at The Golf Club of Georgia’s Lakesise Course.

Colt Knost, who won the U.S. Amateur, defeated British Am titleholder Drew Weaver, 2 and 1 Wednesday afternoon. The U.S. champ leads the series, 6-5.
 
Knost, the former SMU All-American who has conditional status on the Nationwide Tour, turned pro following last summer’s Walker Cup, forfeiting his spot at Augusta next week, leaving only Virginia Tech’s Weaver and Alabama’s Michael Thompson, the U.S. Amateur runner-up, as the lone college players in the field.
 
Today, Weaver played Augusta National for the 12th time, but prior to the start of the Masters, he and his Hokie teammates wil play in the Administaff/Augusta State Invitational at the Champions Retreat Golf Club in nearby Evans, Ga.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted April 2
 

Another example I just wanted to toss out there: BYU recently competed in what is the toughest-ranked college tournament to this point in the season – the U.S. Collegiate Championship. The field included eight teams in the Golfweek/Sagarin top 10.
 
The Cougars, having a down year, entered the event ranked No. 101 in the rankings and placed 15th in the 15-team field. This week BYU checks in at No. 105. However, The Cougars strength of schedule improved 15 spots from No. 62 to No. 47.
 
Remember, it’s not always who you play, it’s how you play when you play.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted April 1
 

Monday is here and it's time for my top-5 list of noteworthy “stuff” from the past week in college golf. This will appear each Monday in Blog U. throughout the college season.
 
5. Last year nine teams that were in the men's regional fields sported a less-than-.500 winning percentage. Right now, in the top 70, there are eight teams with a head-to-head won-loss record below .500 ... 31. North Carolina State (38-49-0), 43. Vanderbilt (57-65-5), 45. Texas (67-73-3), 49. Georgia State (39-66-2), 54. Augusta State, (44-54-3), 61. Coastal Carolina (38-64-2), 65. Northwestern (43-55-0) and 66. Minnesota (38-65-1).
 
4. Arkasas senior Stacy Lewis, the defending NCAA champ, won the Bryant National Collegiate edging Amanda – in our small world of college golf, Amanda works – by a single shot. The victory was her fifth this year.
 
3. If they don't win the Ohio Valley Conference, Eastern Kentucky should be a lock to get an at-large bid to regional play. The Colonels won the rain-shortened Adidas Hoosier Invitational. You can be certain Eastern Kentucky will have a lot fans cheering them on to win the OVC's AQ.
 
2. The Indiana women's team has had a roller coaster ride this spring and has been flirting with being a bubble team. That may have changed this past week, as the Hoosiers most likely secured one of the 63 spots in the postseason after a win at the Mountain View Collegiate.
 
1. Florida won the Bryant National Collegiate finishing ahead of Duke. Do I need to say anymore, you know, like Sandra Gal leaving Gainesville for the LPGA Tour prior to the spring season? The Gators are the surprise team of the spring in all of college golf!
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 31

UCLA ended the fall season and started the spring No. 1 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings. Duke moved to No. 1 after its victory at the UCF Invitational. However, since that win the Blue Devils have tied for fifth and placed second, and again the Bruins have move back to No. 1. UCLA will be in action next at the Arizona State Sun Devil Invitational later this week.
 
On the individual side, Amanda (we don’t need to give a last name) is still No. 1 despite Arkansas senior Stacy Lewis finishing one shot ahead of her to win the Bryan National Collegiate. Lewis, who is No. 2, is now 3-6-1 all time vs. Amanda.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 30

There were a couple of interesting developments at the Bryan National Collegiate.

Duke leads by just a single shot over Florida, which means the Blue Devils will have to earn their victory if they should go on to win. Another interesting note is that Arkansas’ Stacy Lewis, the defending NCAA champion, posted a 3-under 69 to lead Amanda of Duke, two-time National Player of the Year, by four shots heading into the final round. Sidenote: Steffi Kirchmayr of Charleston is tied with Amanda - can she make a run in the final round?
 
The all-time series between the top two players in women’s golf has Amanda leading with a 6-2-1 record. She is 2-0 against Lewis this spring with head-to-head wins at the UCF Challenge and the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 29

Duke’s tie for fifth place last Sunday at the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic nearly cost the Blue Devils the No. 1 ranking in college golf. However, Duke remained just ahead of UCLA and hit the course today at an event they are all too familiar with.
 
Since the start of the Bryan National Collegiate in 1998, Duke has won won the title six times. That tie for fifth place appears to be well behind Amanda & Company. After the opening round, the Blue Devils have the lead - four shots ahead of Florida. That’s right Florida ... are they better without Sandra Gal? Well, they certainly are not worse.
 
Should be an entertaining weekend, not in the team race - Duke should win. But, eyes are on the Amanda/Stacy Lewis competition. Clearly Amanda is the clear favorite to make it three player of the year titles in a row, but if Lewis has any hopes of knocking Amanda off her perch this would be the time to start finishing ahead of her (the two are tied at 2 under after the first day) . I doubt it happens. Don’t get me wrong Lewis is one of the very best - just the second best.
 
- Lance Ringler
Posted March 28

I promise I will stop talking about slow play soon, but it’s simply part of the game and here to stay, at least at the college level. There will be nothing that can or will ever be done about it at the collegiate level unless we see a body of officials that is organized and hired to be at every tournament just like other NCAA sports.
 
Now, to the line I often see on Golfstat’s live scoring that always gets a laugh - at least from me: “We are running about 30 minutes behind schedule. Start of first round was delayed due to frost on the course.”
 
Like that matters. We are still ordering pizza back to the room at 9 o’clock.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 27

I hate to be one to jump on bandwagons of hot teams. I have always supported and been loyal to my roots and initial thoughts. Heck, I used to be an Indianapolis Colts season ticket holder when Jef George was the starting quarterback ... and I am still a Colts fan.
 
For the past couple of years I have been picking UCLA to win it all, and while I think this edition of Bruin golf may be the best, I am leaning towards cross-town rival USC as my favorite. The Trojans are certainly doing their best to make me change my mind with a victory today at the U.S. Collegiate Championship - a 15-team field that included eight of the top 10 teams in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings.
 
While there’s no doubt Alabama will be the No. 1 team in the country when the rankings are updated next week, and deservingly so ... USC may be the best pick at Purdue later this spring.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 26

While most of the attention was focused on the U.S. Collegiate Classic, there was a few things that caught my eye from another event that ended play today.
 
The Hootie at Bulls Bay was won by North Carolina State, a much needed victory for a team that is clearly a top-40 team but may not have the needed .500 winning percentage to get into the postseason. The Wolfpack recorded a 13-under 271 to win the 15-team event and pick up the 14-0 head-to-head record. The finish was very impressive and could go down as one of the clutch performances of the season - especially if N.C. State gets over the .500 mark. Almost equally as eye-catching was Duke finishing last.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 25

Time for my top-5 list of noteworthy items from last week. This will appear on Blog U. each Monday throughout the season
 
5. Amanda tied for third place at the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic. The Duke junior has now placed in the top 10 in each of her 28 college starts. Her overall head-to-head win-loss record is 2,382-64-21 which computes to a .970 winning percentage. Are you kidding me?
 
4. If there is one team that will undoubtedly benefit from no more districts, that team is Eastern Kentucky (men). For whatever reasons the committee decided on, the Colonels never received one of the District 4 (also know as the Midwest District) allocated spots. This year teams simply need to be one in the top 60 to be safe. After a second-place finish at the Pinehurst Intercollegiate, Eastern Kentucky is close to an at-large bid. The Colonels are No. 53 this week with an overall head-to-head won-loss record of 85-10-2.
 
3. Last week on “Off Campus” I told you about Ryan Spears of Wichita State and Aaron Goldberg of San Diego State - which I assume you knew about. And last fall I told you about Troy Merritt and if you forgot his name, now we be a good time to remember him again. Merritt won for the third time this year breaking a school record with a 16-under 200 total to win the Ron Moore Invitational. Merritt is closing in on a top 50 national ranking - he is No. 54 in the latest Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings.
 
2. The Purdue women’s team has turned in a couple of good showings as of late. Yesterday the Boilermakers tied Georgia for the title at the Liz Murphey (lost in a playoff - see blog entry below) and placed second at the UCF Challenge. Is it possible we need to consider Purdue as a legit contender to win it all in Albuquerque? The Boilermakers did finish second at last year’s NCAA Championship.
 
1. The biggest noise made last week came at the Barona Collegiate Cup where I was on hand to see Texas A&M open up a can of “Aggie Whoop Ass” (can I say that?) on the field. The Aggies finished the 54-hole event at 37-under, 20 shots clear of the second-place team.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 24

Arizona coach Rick LaRose calls me Dark Cloud. His assistant John Knauer chimes in with Rainman Ron. Others have given me many similar – some not so nice – nicknames.

It all has to do with the weather. To be more specific the bad weather I seem to have follow me to golf tournaments wherever I go. It’s been that way for years.

And it certainly hasn’t let up this spring. I’ve visited the Ping Arizona, John Hayt, Seminole Intercollegiate and Linger Longer. All had their fair share of weather problems.

This week, I think LaRose and Knauer owe me big time. Instead of going to Tucson for Arizona’s National Invitational Tournament, I went to the U.S. Collegiate at the Golf Club of Georgia in Alpharetta, just north of Atlanta.

I talked with LaRose Monday morning and he reported the weather out there was 85 degrees and sunny during Sunday’s opening round and was scheduled to get up to 88 degrees for the second round.

“Well, you’ll be really proud of me,” I told him. “They had a half-hour frost delay this morning and right now we’re getting a pretty good snow fall.”

The snow didn’t last or stick and play was never stopped. But it was definitely not the perfect day for a round of golf. Temperatures stayed steady in the low 40s with winds blowing 15-20 mph for a wind chill of 35 degrees.

The thing that worries me the most is having to admit that maybe – now just maybe – LaRose is right about me!

– Ron Balicki
Posted March 24

Why have a playoff in college golf? It goes in the books as a tie, unless of course you are the team who won the playoff.
 
Tonight I was sent two e-mail press releases, one from Georgia and one from Purdue. The headline from Georgia reads: “Georgia Wins Liz Murphey Classic in Playoff Over Purdue.” The one from Purdue reads: “PURDUE GOLFERS SHARE TOURNAMENT MEDALIST HONORS.”
 
What goes in the official results for NCAA purposes is a tie, co-champs, share the title, etc ... This is the same with the individual part of college golf tournaments. Why even have the playoff? I know the answer: There is only one first-place trophy ... so, save the second place trophy for next year and purchase a duplicate for this year’s co-champion. That should do it. Plus these teams have flights to catch.

– Lance Ringler
Posted March 23

I must admit, as much as I enjoy following college golf every day, the first and second rounds of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament gets my attention this time of the year. So, if I have missed something glaring in the college golf world, I apologize. And by the way, Duke made a bit of a move at the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic, now in a tie for seventh, but it’s doubtful they could win the event.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 22

I’ve never been one to get too upset about pace of play. When I’m golfing, there’s no where I’d rather be than on the course, especially on a beautiful day. But during a round Wednesday at a course outside of Orlando, I was stuck directly behind a match between Dayton and Stetson. I believe there were only 15 players in the event, and it took them over five hours to finish. At three different points during the round, my group, along with the group behind us, waited on the tee of a par 3 for the last group of the match to clear the green.

PICK IT UP!

Someone asked if we should call the clubhouse to get the ranger on the course, which sounds like a good idea on the surface, but this is a problem the coaches should have handled.

– Dan Mirocha
Posted March 22

The Blue Devils, winners of the last three NCAA Championships and current No. 1 team in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings, posted a 314 in the opening round of the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic. Duke trails tournament leader LSU by 17 shots.
 
Is it possible Duke can pull a Tiger Woods performance over the next two rounds and win the title?
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 21

The postseason is near and I have received a few e-mails asking when and where the regionals will be played. Here you go:
 
The women’s regionals will be played May 8-10
East: University of Georgia Golf Course, Athens, Ga. (Host: Georgia)
Central: University of Texas Golf Club, Austin, Texas (Host: Texas)
West: Lincoln Hills Golf Club, Sacramento, Calif. (Host: California State)
 
The men’s regionals will be played May 15-17
East: Council Fire Golf Club, Chattanooga, Tennessee (Host: Tennessee-Chattanooga)
Central: Scarlet Golf Course, Columbus, Ohio (Host: Ohio State)
West: Gold Mountain Golf Club, Bremerton, Washington (Host: Washington)
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 20

Even though the college season is in full swing, there are a few schools we know of that will need coaches by season’s end.
 
Bob Livingstone is retiring at Long Beach State, and any front-runners have yet to be named for the job. Assistant coaches, get your resumes together because this can be a good job for a young go-getter. If the administration steps up and provides more support, the position will be that much better.
 
On the women’s side, Bill Dicus will become the full-time men’s coach at Appalachian State, and the search is on for a full-time women’s coach. Athletics Director Charlie Cobb feels in order to have more success in their conference, one head coach for each team is the way to go.
 
Two good jobs await for a couple of young coaches looking to get their start in Division I golf.
 
- Lance Ringler
March 19

Attention coaches: If you are looking for an event to play in next spring, you may want to phone the folks at San Diego State to inquire about participation in the 2009 Barona Collegiate Cup. I have been to many, many college tournaments in the past decade and as far as convenience - I can’t remember one being better. Everything you could possibly need is on property. Not to mention the golf course, which is very good (played host to last year’s Nationwide Tour Championship).
 
Word has it they may increase the field, which is a must in the .500 Rule era, and possibly play an 18-18-18 format instead of the 36-18.
 
The involvement of school alumni or boosters is a prerequisite – although it may not be required. All you have to do is bring a few boosters along and you can get everything paid for and maybe get some coin sent back your way. And it’s a good deal for the boosters – they get to play in a college am and take part in a blackjack or maybe even a poker tournament against other school supporters with a chance to win big dollars.
 
The only part I missed was the limousine ride to and from the airport. Sign me up for next year!
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 18

Once again it’s time for my top-5 list of noteworthy “stuff” from the past week in college golf. This will appear each Monday in Blog U. throughout the college season.

5. If the Kentucky men’s team gets the invite to regional play, this past week could likely be the reason. The Wildcats went 19-8 last week after a second-place showing at the Palmas Del Mar Intercollegiate and then an eighth-place finish at the Schenkel E-Z-GO Invitational. Kentucky has its best won-loss record on the year at 64-54-1 and is holding steady at No. 57 (UK finished the fall at No. 72) in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings.
 
4. For the sake of this item, let’s just say the “magic number” to get into the men’s postseason will fall at No. 65 – meaning the top 65 teams would be safe (we all know this is not exact, but time has showed us the Golfweek/Sagarin numbers are usually not off more than a spot or two). Looking at the updated rankings, the following teams would be crossed off due to a less than .500 record: No. 27 Arizona State, No. 38 Coastal Carolina, No. 45 Vanderbilt, No. 47 North Carolina State, No. 48 Augusta State, No. 61 Georgia State and No. 64 Northwestern.

3. Alabama wins again and moves into the top spot of the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings. Win No. 5 came at the Schenkel E-Z-GO Invitational and set a new school record for wins in a season. The Tide’s next stop comes at the U.S. Collegiate Championship March 24-26 in Atlanta, and that field is loaded.

2. Penn State ended the fall as one of the surprise teams in college golf. The Nittany Lions were ranked No. 21 after playing five events. This past week Penn State played for the first time and placed fourth at The Cleveland Golf Palmetto Invitational. Head coach Greg Nye has been around the block a few times and with all of the new guidelines and erasing of district allocations, this might be an early start for Penn State golf in years to come. If it’s not Penn State, look for some northern climate teams to play six or maybe seven times in the fall and then sit until April. Not that bad of an idea when Penn State is playing in the regionals and Arizona or Texas may not.

1. Look who’s back ... Florida State’s Caroline Westrup has started the spring season the way she had been playing for the past couple of seasons. After failing to register a finish in the top 10 during the fall she has finished 6th in Puerto Rico, tied for 7th at the UCF Challenge and then won the LSU/Cleveland Golf Classic, helping the Seminoles to the team title and a top-5 finish for the first time this year.

– Lance Ringler
Posted March 17

We decided this week to bring “Off Campus” to the Barona Collegiate Cup hosted by San Diego State at the Barona Resort not far from downtown San Diego. While teams were out practicing a few folks, including myself, gathered in the pro shop to watch Tiger Woods win the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

The entire property is first class - from the rooms to the service to the golf facility, but one thing sticks out as a bogey. They need to get a new television in the pro shop and the staff agreed with me. They even have HD TVs in the food court here at Barona.
 
For those of you that are used to watching HD, let this serve as your warning if you have to watch a sporting event with an old fashion picture.
 
By the way, was that a swoosh on Tiger’s ball that I saw just before it fell into the cup on the final hole?
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 16

When Georgia sophomore Hudson Swafford finished his second round in the Linger Longer Invitational at Reynolds Landing, I asked him how he played.

“Well,” he replied, “I made two birdies and one bogey.”

“Good round,” I came back with.

At which time Swafford burst out laughing.

So what was so funny, I thought.

“I shot 81,” he said.

How can one shoot 81 with only one bogey and two birdies?

“That’s easy,” Swafford said. “I made three doubles and a quad. I even had a four-putt. Worse thing about that was I three-putted from 3 feet.”

One thing about it, golf is never dull when the Hud-man is out there playing. He reminds me a lot of former Clemson star Lucas Glover – fun to watch, and always expect the unexpected.

– Ron Balicki
Posted March 16

I understand both sides of the .500 Rule and I think most would take the appropriate side given which school they were at - with the exception of Minnesota’s Brad James. But once again we are seeing the aftermath of the .500 Rule this weekend at the Linger Longer Invitational
 
In years past, the Linger Longer Invitational, hosted by Mercer, had been played after the regional fields have been selected, making the event, for the most part, a non-factor. However, because the event was scheduled this weekend and it very much is a factor.
 
Eastern Michigan and Kennessaw State are in front of the likes of No. 16 Clemson and No. 19 Texas Tech with only 18 holes to go. Interesting, very interesting.

Maybe there is more truth to some teams just needing accessibility to play the top programs. Or maybe that’s just golf and anything truly can happen. And this is still stroke-play time in college golf; just wait until the day when we see more match play. When that happens you just might know which of these underdogs is the Eagles and which one is the Owls.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 15

I’m thinking they might want to change the name of the Linger Longer Invitational to the M&M&M&M&M Collegiate.

As the tournament’s first round was getting underway and I’m looking around at everyone milling around the clubhouse area, I noticed all these people wearing hats with a big M on the front. And they came in a rainbow of colors.

Then I realized this was a tournament filled with M-teams.

There was host Mercer (from Macon, Ga., no less), and you also had Mississippi and Mississippi State, along with Memphis and Michigan.

Too bad they didn’t put a bag of M&M’s in everyone’s box lunch!

– Ron Balicki
Posted March 14

I’ve been to what seems like a zillion tournaments that have featured a shotgun start. None, however, quite like the one staged at the Linger Longer Invitational at Reynolds Landing.

This one actually took place the day prior to the opening round and about 10 miles from the course itself. But it was full of shotguns.

As part of the pre-tournament festivities players and coaches were invited to a late Thursday afternoon Low Country Boil – shrimp, sausage, corn on the cob, new potatoes and cole slaw – at the Lake Oconee Shooting Club. They were also invited to take advantage of the club’s skeet shooting range.

“It was an absolute blast, no pun intended,” said Clemson coach Larry Penley. “It’s the most fun we’ve had at a college tournament. We had two guys who never shot a gun before in their lives. It was a hoot.”

I thought about giving it a try, but when I arrived the first person I saw down on the range was Georgia coach Chris Haack. Since I have put the “Wrong Ron Jinx” on the Bulldogs by picking them to win the NCAA the last few years, I decided getting too close to an armed Haack was probably not a good idea.

So, I did the next best thing – I headed for the food line.

– Ron Balicki
Posted March 14

I have deemed next week “Play Faster in a College Golf Tournament Week” (watch today’s Off Campus show for more details).
 
Now, I don’t plan to continue singling out college golf because slow play is a problem at all levels of golf. I honestly don’t think there is anything that can be done to fix the problem because college golf is not policed the same way as other college sports. Think about it: Is there another sport at the college level that does not have an organized body of rules officials that have to be at every contest? Many college tournaments don’t even have rules officials, and coaches certainly won’t give out penalties.
 
Even if a few tried solving the problem, it wouldn’t be consistent throughout college golf, and that wouldn’t be fair. Just as with the NCAA Championships, when they try to input some sort of pace of play policy at the most important event of the year and have done nothing about it for the previous 11 events.
 
So, next week is all about players trying to play faster. Just try, that’s all we can ask. I know it won’t really work, and there is nothing that will ever really help, but we’ll all have to simply deal with it... after next week.
 
- Lance Ringler
Posted March 14

“Play against better teams and you will be ranked higher.”
 
I hear that all the time, but first you have to play well when you play against better teams.
 
Last week at the Southern Highlands Collegiate Classic, Air Force was the lowest ranked team in the field at No. 184 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings. The Falcons finished 15th in the 15-team field and dropped six spots 190th. A field that included seven top 10 teams.
 
Have you noticed that UNC-Greensboro’s schedule strength is No. 38? The Spartans are ranked No. 167. Keeping it close to UNCG, Virginia Tech’s schedule is just a notch worse than than the Spatans at No. 39, however the Hokies rank 30th in the country.
 
Bottom line here is play well and everything will take care of itself.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 13

One year ago Washington State assistant coach Kari Sampson was home in Pullman, Wash., on maternity leave watching the Cougars post a final-round 8-under 280 to place eighth at the UNLV Spring Invitational. This year, however, Sampson was running solo with the squad while head coach Walt Williams was with the men.
 
Sampson kept the Cougars playing well at the Boulder Creek Golf Club. Washington State took the second-round lead and finished with a 5-under total to tie BYU for the team title. The finish came at a great time for Washington State - they entered the event ranked No. 57 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings. The magic number is predicted to be 54 to get into the postseason.
 
I bet coach Williams was watching live scoring.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 12

If there is a such thing as fatigue in golf, odds are we will see it in the final round of the UNLV Spring Invitational.
 
On Wednesday, the Texas Tech women’s team will be competing for the sixth consecutive day (seventh if you count a practice round). The Red Raiders were first in action at the Rio Verde Invitational in Rio Verde, Ariz., where they placed third. Texas Tech is currently in third with one round to go at UNLV’s event.
 
Wonder if the will have Thursday a.m. workouts back in Lubbock?
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 11

Once agian, it's time for my top-5 list of noteworthy “stuff” from the past week in college golf. This will appear each Monday in Blog U. throughout the college season.

5. In case you don't follow UCLA golf as close as I do, Erik Flores, now a junior, is starting to get his game back. Flores won his first college event Feb. 26 at the CSUB Invitational and was in contention this past weekend at the Southern Highlands Collegiate Classic. Flores tied for fourth at 2-under 214 and is now No. 43 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings. He finished is freshman year ranked No. 14, before falling to No. 147 as a sophomore.

4. After winning just one time in her first three and half years at Michigan State, senior Sara Brown has now won her last starts. Brown won by eight shots at the Texas A&M MO-Morial and has vaulted her way to No. 24 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings after ending the fall at No. 82.

3. I know Southern California did not win the Southern Highlands Collegiate Classic (the Trojans did win earlier in the week at their home event), but this team is making a case to get my pick in the postseason. We all know how good Jamie Lovemark and Rory Hie are, but the Trojans struggled to get that fourth and fifth score during the fall. That appears to no longer be an issue with freshman Matthew Giles making his debut this spring. The youngster from Australia could be the missing piece to an NCAA title for the other team in Los Angeles.

2. I had to beat a dead horse, but The final pairing of Adam Mitchell (Georgia), Matt Kinsinger (UNLV) and Stefan Wiedergruen (Charlotte) took six hours and 11 minutes to complete its round. WOW!

1. UNLV was ranked outside the top 20 earlier this season, but that was largely due to a start that included a 12th at the Inverness Intercollegiate at 10th at the PING/Golfweek Preview. The Rebels were without thier top player in Seung Su Han, who was attending PGA Tour Qualifying School as an amateur, for those events. Since then, the Rebels have not placed outside the top four and picked up a big victory over seven top 10 teams at its own Southern Highlands Collegiate Classic. UNLV is now No. 14 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 10

Coastal Carolina coach Allen Terrell brought the party atmosphere of TPC Scottsdale’s 16th hole to college golf this weekend when his team hosted the General Jim Hackler Invitational.

A “party hill” was set up behind the par-3 17th at TPC Myrtle Beach, a 190-yard par-3 with a peninsula green. The course sold beer, while several fraternities and sororities had mixers. Terrell said before the event that he expected at least 500 students to attend.

“It will be a huge social event and a great rallying point for our student body to have fun and support college golf,” Terrell said. “We are trying to spice it up a little bit. Myrtle Beach is about great golf and having a great time.”

– Sean Martin
Posted March 10

Unfortunately, the much-hyped showdown between Amanda Blumenherst and Stacy Lewis at the UCF Challenge hasn’t been a close one. The top two players in the country entered Monday’s second separated by just a shot after Blumenherst shot 3-under 69 to Lewis’ 70. That gap is now nine shots after Blumenherst shot a bogey-free 68. Lewis had one more birdie than Blumenherst Monday, but also had a double bogey, triple bogey and four bogeys in her 76.

Blumenherst is in second, one shot behind teammate Alison Whitaker, while Lewis is T-28. Blumenherst and Lewis each have three victories this season, and neither has finished outside the top five this season. Lewis will have to work hard Tuesday to keep that streak intact.

– Sean Martin
Posted March 10

What a great day for golf at Southern Highlands Golf Club. Some of the best teams and individuals in all of college golf were playing on a beautiful layout on a gorgeous Las Vegas March afternoon ... the only problem was how long it took to play. The final group holed out six hours an 11 minutes after their tee time ... “Holy slow rounds, Batman!
 
UNLV, the tournament host, won this event for the third time in the past four years holding off Charlotte and top-ranked Georgia down the stretch.
 
Best line from Round 3: “Hey Ringler, you would have had time to play a few more games of pool.”
 
That spectator was referring to an “Off Campus” video Asher Wildman and I did talking about how much can be done in six hours - which is the how long it can take for a college golf round. They sure were right.

– Lance Ringler
Posted March 9

If Georgia and Charlotte were Karl Malone and John Stockton was Mother Nature, credit Mother Nature with the assist at the Southern Highlands Collegiate Classic.
 
With the Bulldogs and 49ers in the clubhouse, wind gusting up to 40 mph were drilling the Southern Highlands layout. UNLV, UCLA and USC were in the final group getting the worst of the strong wind. Just two of the 15 players in the final pairing - UNLV’s Seung-su Han and USC’s Tim Sluiter - managed to make a red number in the final four holes (Han made two).
 
The top-ranked Bulldogs ended the second round with a two-shot lead over the host Rebels, while Charlotte was another two shots behind UNLV.
 
Best quote or line I heard from Round 2 : With UNLV stretching it to 7 under and taking a four-shot lead over the field I happen to say to one coach “The Rebels play this course pretty well, wouldn’t you say?” The response: “I guess it makes all of us look dumb.”
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 8

Round 1 at the Southern Highlands Collegiate Championship is in the books and no one should be surprised that host UNLV is near the top of the leaderboard. The Rebels come into the event ranked No. 22 and if you toss out the first two events of the season - a 12th and a 10th - they have not placed outside the top 4 in their last five events. A good showing at home could jump start this team towards a nice postseason run.
 
How about UNLV senior Matt Kinsinger, ranked No. 150 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings? Playing as an individual in this event in 2006, Kinsinger won his first collegiate title - now he is going for No. 2. Kinsinger opened with a 4-under 68 and shares the lead with Charlotte’s Jonas Enander Hedin.
 
For the rest of the spring when I am at an event, I going to attempt to bring you the best quote of the day, either said to me or one that I happen to hear. How about this one from a fan who was walking by Charlotte’s five golf bags lined up outside the clubhouse while the team was inside eating lunch: “These guys are for real, aren’t they?”
 
Sure are!
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 7

I just learned that O.D. Vincent plans to host an individual tournament next fall with a field of 90 players. No team scores will be kept. This will replace the Coca-Cola Duke Golf Classic and will be open to any program that wants to bring individuals.
 
This event will likely not feature any big names, but will get competition days for players that may not make the travel team very often. It will also be an opposite event for Duke (the team will travel to the Brickyard Collegiate Championship hosted by Mercer).
 
At least the word JV, Blue, Red or Freshman won’t be found anywhere on the results sheet.

– Lance Ringler
Posted March 6

If you don’t visit Golfweek’s discussion boards, you might not be very clued into this topic (I am not sure I am). Anyway here we go... There are some sensitve people out there when it comes to “JV” teams in college golf. This issue has surfaced on the discussion boards this week - largely around the UCLA. But that’s not knock the Bruins (we all know what I think about them).
 
UCLA competed in the Cal State Bakersfield Invitational last week and Erik Flores won the event for his first college victory. Is this legal, not legal or what? Well, it has to be permissable in someone’s eyes or I seriously doubt they could be pulling this off.
 
At the USC Invitational that ended yesterday, the Bruins sent the same squad – a JV team – and tied for 13th, which again stirred up a few folks. I don’t understand why USC would allow this to begin with

This is certainly a topic that is going to be discussed more and more.
 
Solution: Remove the word JV or Blue or Red or whatever and they play as individuals - up to 24 days of competition per player and only 24 team days for the team.
 
I mean seriously, Erik Flores as a JV player? C’mon! He was an All-American and finished his freshman season ranked No. 14 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings.
 
Note to NCAA: Leave JV and freshman teams at the high school level.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 5

UCLA had been No. 1 in the women’s Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings. Well, that has changed and a familiar team is back on top - the Duke Blue Devils. Duke landed back in the top spot based after a tie for second at the Arizona Wildcat Invitational. UCLA placed sixth - 18 shots behind Duke.
 
Something tells me Duke will be looking in its rearview mirror the rest of the season.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 4

Time for my top-5 list of noteworthy “stuff” from the past week in college golf. This will appear each Monday in Blog U. throughout the college season.

5. They’re not exactly a college golf powerhouse, but the Bethune-Cookman women’s team is having a very nice season. The Wildcats have won four times in six starts and are about to crack the top 100 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings. Their six-player roster includes just one player from the United States. It’s unlikely we would see this team in the postseason, as the Tigers are not affiliated with a conference that gets an automatic qualifer. Unless they win out and win out big, the selection committee probably won’t give this team a look.

4. Behind the play of Greg Forest and Mike Stern, UCF won it’s own UCF Rio Pinar Invitational, pretty much squashing any thought that it might dip below the .500 record or low enough in the rankings to not get into the postseason. Now, maybe the focus will be on if they can get through regionals and into the NCAA Championship - what a story that would be.

3. If Middle Tennessee State recieves a NCAA Regional tournamnet bid, this past week can be looked at heavily as to why. The Blue Raiders won a pair of tournaments taking them from a team outside the bubble to a team inside the bubble. MTSU first won the All-American Golf Classic and then captured the title at the Ron Smith/USF Invitational.

2. The Alabama men had to have pulled slightly ahead in everyone’s opinion on which team is the tops in the country. Jay Seawell has used a variety of lineups all season long and nothing has changed this spring. Using two different lineups, the Tide won the John Hayt Collegiate Invitational and then again in Puerto Rico. Alabama will look to make it three-for-three this spring when they tee it up at the E-Z-Go Schenkel Invitational in Statesboro, Ga., on March 14.

1. While we are talking about Alabama, we might as well mention the women’s team and their victory at the Lady Puerto Rico Classic. The win could be one of the biggest in program history and the job Mic Potter has done in turning this program around in a short period of time is worth noting.

– Lance Ringler
Posted March 3

Sometimes getting too excited can be hazardous to your health.

Just ask North Carolina assistant coach Don Hill. He knows first hand.

Hill was sitting in a golf cart at the par-3, 12th tee watching the Tar Heels during the final round of the Seminole Intercollegiate at Golden Eagle Country Club.

He watched as Barden Berry hit a pitching wedge on the 135-yard hole and followed the ball as hit landed on the green and rolled into the cup for a hole-in-one.

In a sudden outburst of excitement, Hill jumped straight up. Only he forgot he was still in the cart. His head smashed against the roof – hard.

“Man, did that hurt,” Hill said later, now smiling. “It really stunned me. I think I saw a few stars for a while. I just got caught up in the ball going in I totally forgot I was sitting in the cart.”

After giving him a bit of a skeptical look, Hill invited me to feel to lump on his head.

I declined. I’ve come to know Hill and how at times he can exaggerate a story. This time I believed him. I figured, who else do I know who would do something like that!

– Ron Balicki
Posted March 3

USC is running away with its home event, the USC Collegiate Invitational. The Trojans shot a first-round 284 in windy conditions at North Ranch Country Club in Westlake Village, Calif., and are 21 shots up on second-place Stanford.

Now if only the USC football team could’ve beaten the Cardinal by three touchdowns, they might be holding another national championship trophy.

Making USC’s first-round score more impressive is the fact that NCAA champion Jamie Lovemark shot 78 and was the team’s throw-out score. He was 8 over par through six holes.

USC’s Matt Giles (68) and Rory Hie (69) posted the only sub-par scores of the first round.

– Sean Martin
Posted March 3

Somewhere in Stillwater, Laura Matthews is smiling. Earlier this week, her Cowgirls upset the top four teams in the country to win the Arizona Wildcat Invitational.

Over in Spain, half of the semifinalists at the Spanish Women’s Amateur were Oklahoma State signees – Germany’s Caroline Masson and Sweden’s Caroline Hedwall.

Masson beat Spain’s Adriana Zwanck, 2 and 1, in the final. Zwanck was No. 31 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings before leaving Arizona halfway through this season.

Spain’s Carlota Ciganda, who will attend Arizona State in January 2009, advanced to the quarterfinals. Ciganda won last year’s British Women’s Amateur.

In the men’s event, France’s Victor Dubuisson (Arizona State) and Germany’s Sean Einhaus (Oklahoma State) lost in the first round of match play. Einhaus lost, 1 down, to European Amateur champion Benjamin Hebert.

Daniel Willett, a member of the 2007 Great Britain & Ireland Walker Cup team who played collegiately at Jacksonville State, was the winner.

– Sean Martin
Posted March 2

In keeping up with the trend from this past summer, there were several head coaching jobs that opened up in women’s golf over the winter break.
 
The last one to be filled is the job at Northern Arizona, where Tom McCurdy left Flagstaff, Ariz., to take the job at Wichita State.
 
Northern Arizona had apparently found a coach with a pretty good track record. Former Arizona and Florida women’s coach Kim Haddow, who is in the NGCA Hall of Fame, accepted the job. However, she was there for less than a week and decided to back out.
 
Ferris State head coach Brad Bedortha is expected to be named head coach any day now.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted March 2

DADE CITY, Fla. – Lightning was nowhere in Friday’s forecast at the USF/Ron Smith Invitational at Lake Jovita Golf & Country Club, but Rafael Campos found it. Campos, a sophomore at Virginia Commonwealth, was riding a roller coaster round through 12 holes on the South Course after his shotgun start at No. 15 and was even par – three birdies, three bogeys and six pars – standing on the ninth tee, his 13th hole of the day. Campos played his final six holes in 7 under: that’s a birdie-birdie-birdie-birdie-eagle-birdie finish for a 7-under 65 and a 5-shot lead entering Saturday’s second round of the 54-hole event.

“This is a big confidence-booster for me,’’ said Campos, who is from Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, near San Juan.

– Steve Harmon
Posted Feb. 29

DADE CITY, Fla. – Middle Tennessee has a point to make this spring, and the Blue Raiders are wasting no time in doing it. MTSU, edged out of an NCAA bid last season with a playoff loss to Louisiana-Lafayette in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament, views victory as the only certain path to this year’s NCAAs. MTSU shot 1-under 287 Friday for a four-stroke lead after the first of three rounds in the USF/Ron Smith Invitational at Lake Jovita Golf & Country Club. The final two rounds are Saturday and Sunday.

“We have to play well every week, and the rankings will work themselves out,” MTSU coach Whit Turnbow said.

Middle Tennessee already has one victory this spring, in the 12-team All-American Golf Classic earlier in the week in Spring, Texas.

– Steve Harmon
Posted Feb. 29

Not exactly the start Chris Haack was looking for. His top-ranked Bulldogs started the spring with a 6-over 294 and are T-9 after the first round of the Puerto Rico Classic, 10 shots behind co-leaders Clemson and Oklahoma State.

Rickie Fowler, Golfweek’s No. 1 individual, got off to a better start than the top-ranked team; he’s T-4 after a 69. Alabama’s Matthew Swan and Georgia Tech’s Chesson Hadley are tied for the lead with 66s. Hadley is the country’s sixth-ranked player.

Swan helped the second-ranked Crimson Tide finish the day T-3 with East Tennessee State. Hadley’s round was the only bright spot for the sixth-ranked Yellow Jackets, who are in 11th place.

Don’t be surprised to see Georgia make a comeback, though. They opened the Isleworth-UCF Collegiate Invitational with a 3-over 291, before shooting consecutive 275s to win by a cool 21 shots.

– Sean Martin
Posted Feb. 29

While I normally focus on men’s college golf, a team on the women’s side recently got my attention. The way I figure it, anytime a team wins five of its first six starts, it’s worth mentioning – men or women.

That’s what the East Carolina women’s team has done this season. Just call it Pirate Power. ECU recently captured the Qdoba Invitational in Miami, winning by 14 shots over No. 25 Louisville and by 16 over No. 26 Virginia. It was the Pirates’ fourth consecutive victory dating back to the fall.

No, ECU doesn’t go up against the likes of Duke, UCLA, Arizona State, USC or Florida all the time, but it certainly has proven it can handle the teams it does face.

And for those who think you have to play against the super powers to gain a high ranking, the Pirates are proving otherwise. They are No. 20 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings with a 44-14 record against top 100 teams and 69-14 mark overall.

Sophomore Abby Bools won the Qdoba for her second title of the season and was named Conference USA Player of the Week for the second time. It was the fifth time this season an ECU player has garnered the honor. But it has been a definite team effort. In five of the six starts, ECU has had at least two players finish in the top 5.

To read Beth Ann Baldry's feature on East Carolina from the fall,
click here.

– Ron Balicki
Posted Feb. 28

The race for women's player of the year honors should be a good one this spring. One day after Arkansas’ Stacy Lewis posted a four-shot victory at the Lady Puerto Rico Classic, Duke’s Amanda Blumenherst won by three shots at the Arizona Wildcat Invitational.

It was the third win of the season for both players. Blumenherst, winner of the past two Golfweek Player of the Year awards, currently holds down the top spot in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings. Lewis, who’s won three consecutive starts, is ranked second.

– Sean Martin
Posted Feb. 27

This entry won’t include me ranting about setting up a golf course that will allow women’s teams to experience the same sort of low scoring that the men do. Because scores in Round 2 at the Wildcat Invitational were not good, largely due to winds gusting well over 20 mph that whipped through Arizona National throughout the round.

How bad was it? UCLA, ranked No. 1 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings, had just one player – Sydnee Michaels – break 80 and she eagled the final hole. The Bruins posted a second-round 321 to fall into a tie for eight place.
 
What is likely to end up being the toughest regular season season event in women’s golf saw the scoring average for the second day rise to 80.14. So the tournament staff that set the course up gets a free pass this time.
 
– Lance Ringler
Posted Feb. 27

It’s Monday and that means it’s time for my top-5 list of noteworthy “stuff” from the past week in college golf. This will appear each Monday in Blog U. throughout the college season.

5. Beans Kelly’s first tournament back to coaching was probably not what she expected after leading Georgia to numerous titles over the years. Coastal Carolina placed 12th in the 12-team field at the Qdoba Invitataional. Kelly accepted the job at Coastal Carolina after being out of the business for nearly a decade.

4. A prominent men’s college golf coach sent this e-mail to me today: “Have you noticed what I have noticed…..Kentucky wins, Florida wins, Alabama wins, Tennessee wins, Mississippi State wins and now Auburn!!!! Damn the SEC is getting tough.”

3. It’s time to pay attention to the East Carolina women’s team. The Pirates won for the fifth time in six starts this year. Who would have thought that the return of Kevin Williams as head coach would land this squad in the top 25? Not me, especially after their best player (Lene Krog) and coach (Kim Lewellen) left for Virginia.
 
2. Cedric Scotto. Something – like a computer ranking with no bias to schedule strength – tells me you may want to find out who he is (by looking at Sean Martin’s entry below).
 
1. It appeared all fall that there were only four teams that had a shot at winning the national title on the women’s side – UCLA, Duke, Southern California and Arizona State. Everyone else was playing for No. 5. But it now looks like we may have found a fifth team. For the second week in a row Florida was named Golfweek’s Team of the Week after the Gators lapped the field at their own SunTrust Lady Gator Invitational. What’s even more impressive is that Florida is vaulting up the college golf ladder even after the departure of Sandra Gal, who left a semester early after qualifying for the LPGA.

– Lance Ringler
Posted Feb. 25

Amanda Blumenherst got off to quite a start at Arizona National Golf Club in the first round of the Arizona Wildcat Intercollegiate. The Duke junior was 5 under through five holes thanks to three birdies and an eagle. She ended the day with a 68.

Check Golfweek’s live scoring page to stay updated on her progress.

– Sean Martin
Posted Feb. 25

If you looked at the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings this morning, one name probably jumped out at you – Southeastern Louisiana’s Cedric Scotto. He debuted at No. 3 in the rankings.

The freshman from France played the first two events of his college career in the past two weeks. He finished second in a triangular match with Colorado State and Eastern Illinois on Feb. 15. Three days later, he finished fourth at the GADO North Texas Classic.

Scotto, the 12th-ranked amateur in France according to the Golfweek/Scratch Players World Amateur Rankings, was runner-up in the 2007 French Junior and finished T-11 at the English Stroke Play Championship.

He’s pretty well-rounded, listing tennis, squash, badminton and salsa as his hobbies.

– Sean Martin
Posted Feb. 25

We certainly have not s