June 1, 2007

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - UAB sophomore Zach Sucher continues to impress at the 2007 NCAA Golf Championships, as he enters the final round of the NCAA Men's Golf Championship just one stroke back of the overall individual lead. The Mobile, Ala. avoided disaster on his first nine, and rebounded to finish at even par 70 on the day, and will enter the final 18 holes in a tie for fourth overall with a five-under par 205 for the tournament.

Sucher's quest to become the first-ever NCAA individual champion at UAB nearly came to a disastrous halt on the 18th green. Sucher, who began the round on the No. 10 tee, had approximately a one-foot par putt, but was forced to re-mark his ball in order to let another player in his group putt out. Unfortunately, Sucher did not return his ball marker to the original location, and instead putted from where he moved the marker, costing him a two stroke penalty and very possibly the outright overall lead after 54 holes.

Though the mistake bothered Sucher, he was able to brush it off and finished the rest of his round at four-under par.

"What happened today on the 18th green really bothered me," Sucher said. "I didn't start the round great and I was thinking to myself about just making the par putt, then getting some birdies on the next nine and I would be fine. It was just a lack of concentration. After the mistake, I just told myself that I played the front nine well yesterday, so I was going to try to make as many birdies as I can."

Similar to Thursday's second round, the Mobile, Ala. native began Friday's penultimate round struggling over his first nine holes. After a birdie on the 11th hole, things changed dramatically as Sucher would go on to bogey the 12th, 14th and 17th holes, before the error on No. 18. He ended his first nine at four-over par 39, while the error on 18 marked his first double bogey of the 72-hole event.

Things would take a turn for the better for the sophomore standout, as he continues to display remarkable maturity throughout the NCAA Championships. Sucher regained a stroke with a birdie on the par four, 434-yard second hole. His hot streak continued with another birdie on the 348-yard par four fifth, followed by an eagle on the 485-par five sixth, his second in as many days on the hole. For the three rounds, Sucher has played holes No. 5 and 6 at five-under par.

"I really hit the ball flawless on my back nine," Sucher said. "I hit every fairway and green which I was very happy about. It gave me some confidence that I was able to gather myself after my front nine and score so low on my back nine."

Sucher, who will be looking to bring home UAB's first-ever national title in any sport, will enter the final round of the four-day event in a four-way tie for fourth place with Georgia Tech's Chesson Hadley, BYU's Daniel Summerhays and Coastal Carolina's Dustin Johnson. Stanford's Rob Grube, Clemson's Kyle Stanley and Georgia Tech's Cameron Tringale are currently tied for the overall lead at six-under par (204) for the Championships.

"I am really excited for the opportunity," Sucher said regarding his chance to bring home a national title. "I feel I am going to get out there and play really well tomorrow. I don't feel any pressure because it is just me against the golf course. I think it definitely gives me an advantage over rest of the field."

Sucher will tee off his second round on the holes on the par 70, 6,817-yard Golden Horseshoe Golf Club course at 9:12 a.m. ET on hole No. 1. Sucher will be grouped among the leaders with No. 5-ranked Stanley and No. 4-ranked Summerhays during the final round. Live stats and live video can be found on golfstat.com.