May 27, 2008

UAB NCAA Championship Notes

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The 27th-ranked UAB men's golf team is making final preparations for the 2008 NCAA National Championships on Wednesday through Saturday, May 28-31. The Blazers completed two rounds of practice on the Kampen Course at the Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex, and will tee off furst round action at 12:59 p.m. ET (11:59 a.m. CT) on Wednesday. UAB, which received the No. 8 seed, will be paired with No. 4 UCLA and No. 2 Alabama.

"We are excited to return to the NCAA Championship," UAB head coach Alan Kaufman said. "We have been practicing the last two days and it is a very tough golf course. At the same time, everyone plays the same course, so we just need to play smart and we'll be fine.

"The weather has been a little inconsistent and it may rain later this week," Kaufman continued. "It is pretty cool and windy right now and we may see some really nice weather later in the week, so we are going to compete in all kinds elements. That will certainly affect how you approach each round."

The Blazers come into nationals on quite a roll. UAB qualified to compete for a national championship for the first time since 2002 and the third time in program history following a fifth-place finish at the NCAA East Regional on May 15-17. It marked the best-ever finish by a UAB men's golf team in a NCAA Regional event. Junior Zach Sucher claimed co-medalist honors at the East Regional with a three-round total of 13-under par 839, the second-best 54-hole mark in school history.

Prior to the performance at the East Regional, UAB captured the program's first-ever Conference USA men's golf championship (April 20-22). It marked the team's second tournament win of the season (Sam Hall Intercollegiate, Nov. 5-6) to go along with three runner-up and 10 top-five results in the 13-tournament slate this season.

Individually, Sucher and senior Brad Smith lead the way, as both players are ranked among the top 60 golfers in the country (Sucher - 16th, Smith 57th), entering the nationals. Sucher was tabbed the 2008 Conference USA Men's Golfer of the year last month, while Smith was selected to the league's first team.

Wednesday's opening round is highlighted by Sucher's group, which features three of the top players in the nation. Michael Thompson of Alabama, No. 2 in Golfweek.com's latest rankings and No. 3-ranked Kevin Chappell of UCLA join 16th-ranked Sucher as the trio tees off at 1:37 p.m. on the No. 10 tee.

Sophomore Adam West gets the Blazers started with a 12:59 p.m. ET tee time, followed by junior Mike Oimoen at 1:09 p.m., Kyle Sapp at 1:18 p.m., Brad Smith at 1:28 p.m. and Sucher at 1:37 p.m.

In all, 30 teams and six individuals will compete for the NCAA national championship. Southern California, ranked No. 3 in the Golfweek/Sagarin Index has received the top-seed for the tournament. Georgia holds the top spot in the rankings and will be the No. 2 seed in the tournament. No. 17 Wake Forest is the third seed, followed by No. 5 Oklahoma State as the No. 4 seed. The Cowboys' Rickie Fowler is the top-ranked individual and on May 18 became the first-ever freshman to win the Ben Hogan Award. No. 14 Clemson is seeded fifth and No. 7 Florida is the No. 6 seed.

Also qualifying for the championship (in order by seed) is No. 4 UCLA, No. 27 UAB, No. 2 Alabama, No. 6 Stanford, No. 16 Auburn, No. 8 Charlotte, No. 18 Texas A&M, No. 10 East Tennessee State, No. 24 Indiana, No. 44 Oregon, No. 43 Augusta State, No. 42 UC Irvine, No. 47 Illinois, No. 23 Louisville, No. 38 Mississippi State, Washington, No. 50 St. Mary's (Calif.), No. 19 Arizona State, No. 33 Kent State, No. 40 Penn State, No. 36 San Diego State, No. 31 Texas, No. 49 Middle Tennessee State and Virginia.

Live stats can be found by going to purduesports.com and clicking on the 2008 Golf Championships logo on the right side of the page. UABSPORTS.com will also be conducting a live blog during the event.