Alabama Concludes Play at the SEC Men’s Golf Championships

The Crimson Tide finished 14th overall, failed to make the match play portion of this year’s event

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – The University of Alabama men’s golf team closed play at the 2022 Southeastern Conference Men’s Golf Championships Friday, finishing the stroke play portion in 14th overall with a team total of 871 (290-292-289).

The Crimson Tide was led for a second consecutive round by Charlie Nikitas, who recorded a 1-under par 69 Friday for Alabama’s low round of the tournament. Thomas Ponder also played well in round three, finishing at 1-over par 71. The pair led UA as they finished tied for 42nd overall with matching scores of 5-over par 215s.

The top-eight teams from stroke play advanced to the match play portion of the championship, which will tee off Saturday morning.

HEAD COACH JAY SEAWELL COMMENTS

“In a tournament that we feel is the most important on our schedule, we did not play well. It’s disappointing. Everyone worked hard to get to this point and it’s a letdown, to be honest. There is a lot of work that needs to be done to build Alabama golf back to where it once was and unfortunately this was not it. As a coach, I need to be better. As a team, we will be better moving forward. We have to get the culture back to where it belongs, and that responsibility is on all of us.

“We can always learn lessons. There’s a scoreboard out there for a reason. I think that’s the great thing about sports. It helps build character and helps you overcome adversity. There’s a ton of things that we will learn from this experience, both positively and negatively. The future is bright. We will be back in the spotlight where this program belongs. And when those days come, it will feel just that much better.”

TOURNAMENT RESULTS

• Nikitas’ 1-under 69 came on the heels of carding a 1-over par 71 in round two
• The graduate transfer led the team in a tournament for the first time wearing the crimson and white with his 42nd-place finish
• He finished with a team-leading four birdies to end the event with a 215 (75-71-69)
• Ponder also had four birdies on the day as he matched his opening round of 1-over 71 with Friday’s 18-hole total
• Ponder tied Nikitas for the team lead with his 215 (71-73-71) which marked the fourth time this year he has led UA in a tournament
• JP Cave (72-74-75) and Canon Claycomb (72-75-74) tied for 61st after carding matching scores of 221
• Jack Goldasich, who replaced Dillon West in the Tide’s starting lineup following Wednesday’s opening round, followed his 4-over par 74 Thursday with a 79 Friday

THE FIELD

• No. 3 Vanderbilt (824) won the stroke play portion and received the No. 1 seed in match play, defeating No. 19 Texas A&M (827) and No. 16 Florida (828)

• LSU (831), Missouri (839), No. 12 Georgia (840), No. 18 Tennessee (843) and Mississippi State (844) all qualified for the match play quarterfinal round Saturday morning

2021-22 SEASON HIGHLIGHTS

• As a team, Alabama had three top-five finishes on the year, including a season-best runner-up finish at the 2022 Watersound Invitational
• The Crimson Tide also recorded a pair of fifth-place finishes at the Olympia Fields/Fighting Illini Invitational and the Jackson T Stephens Cup
• The Crimson Tide welcomed 13 league teams for the SEC Match Play Hosted by Jerry Pate – a first of its kind head-to-head match-play event that took the place of the Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate
• Alabama finished that event with a 3-1 record, capped by a heroic chip-in on the final hole in the tournament’s final day by freshman Jones Free
• Claycomb captured his first career medalist honor when he claimed the Watersound Invitational crown to open the 2022 spring season
• Claycomb finished the event with a 14-under par 202 (67-66-69) to earn his first collegiate individual title and his first SEC Golfer of the Week honor
• He went on to record six consecutive rounds in the 60s to open the spring season – the best stretch of his career and most consecutive rounds in the 60s since Justin Thomas had five straight in spring of 2012
• Cave recorded a career-best second-place finish at the OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational, finishing with a three-round total of 2-under par 208 (75-66-67), including going 7-under over his final two rounds
• Cave carded a career-best round of 4-under 66 in the second day on the way to the best finish of his collegiate career
• He also recorded consecutive rounds in the 60s for the first time in his career
• Alabama secured one of the nation’s top signing classes with the addition of Nick Dunlap and Jonathan Griz
• Head coach Jay Seawell also signed a midseason graduate transfer when Charlie Nikitas joined the program in January