Texas Tech University Athletics
Men's Golf Begins National Title Quest In Tucson
May 17, 2011 | Men's Golf
NCAA Tucson Regional Preview May 17, 2011
LUBBOCK, Texas - Texas Tech's journey to a men's golf national championship begins on Thursday when the No. 15 Red Raiders tee off in the NCAA Tucson Regional being held at the Omni Tucson National Golf Resort.
The three-day, 54-hole tournament begins with a 10 a.m. CDT tee time on Thursday with 18 holes being played on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Tee times for Friday and Saturday are set for 9:30 a.m. CDT.
The Red Raiders will be making their 10th consecutive appearance in the NCAA Regionals and will be looking to qualify for the NCAA Championships (May 31-June 5 in Stillwater, Okla.) for the third-straight year. The 10 consecutive postseason appearances ranks second on campus behind the football program that has earned 11-straight bowl bids.
"We are glad to be back in the NCAA Regionals because it's what we've been working toward all season long," said Texas Tech head coach Greg Sands. "Winning the regional championship last year has helped define our program to the point that we now expect to play extremely well at the regionals and qualify for the NCAA Championships."
Comprising the field in Tucson and seeded 1-14 are: Texas A&M (1); San Diego State (2); Texas Tech (3); California (4); Liberty (5); Washington (6); Pepperdine (7); Oregon State (8); Purdue (9); UC Davis (10); Arizona (11); Texas-Arlington (12); Loyola, Md. (13); and Army (14). Along with the 14 teams, there will be five individuals in Zac Blair, BYU; Chris Gilbert, Kansas; Jason Shufflebotham, UAB; Gustaf Kocken, Louisiana-Monroe; and Will Hogan, Missouri State.
Filling out Texas Tech's scorecard in Tucson will be seniors Nils Floren and Matt Smith, junior Tyler Weworski, sophomore Fin Ewing IV and redshirt freshman Chandler Rusk.
Texas Tech enters regional play after finishing fourth at the 2011 Big 12 Conference Championships (April 25-27) held at Prairie Dunes Golf and Country Club in Hutchinson, Kan. Coincidentally, the Red Raiders also finished fourth at the Big 12 Championships in 2010 and then went on to win the NCAA Regional and finished tied for fifth at the NCAA Championships in Chattanooga.
"I think we are playing our best golf right now and have yet to reach our maximum potential," remarked Sands. "This is a talented group that knows what it takes to be successful in the NCAA's because they did it last year. It should be a lot of fun to watch."
The Red Raiders are led by a pair of All-Big 12 honorees in seniors Nils Floren and Matt Smith. Floren, a native of Ljungskile, Sweden, is currently ranked as the No. 27 player in the country in this week's Golfweek rankings. He leads the Red Raiders with a 72.5 stroke average and has posted four top 10 tournament finishes, including the tournament title at the UTSA/Oak Hills Invitational.
Smith, a native of Canberra, Australia, earned his first career All-Big 12 honor from the league following what has been a strong senior season. Smith stands at No. 34 nationally in this week's Golfweek rankings and is second on the team behind Floren with a 72.7 stroke average. He owns four top 10 finishes, including a fourth place finish at the Royal Oaks Intercollegiate.
The Omni Tucson National Golf Resort is a par-71, 7,199-yard course, located in the foothills of the Santa Catalina Mountains. The resort has been home to over 30 PGA Tour events and is the annual host of the University of Arizona National Invitational Tournament. The course has hosted four previous NCAA events in 1992, 1994, 1999 and most recently the NCAA Regionals in 2006.
Fans wishing to track the Red Raiders' progress at the Tucson Regional can do so by logging on to www.golfstat.com. A daily recap and results will be posted on www.texastech.com.
NCAA REGIONALS APPEARANCES (FINISH)
2010 *South Central, College Station (1st)
2009 *Southwest, Austin (2nd)
2008 West, Bremerton, Wash. (12th)
2007 *Central, Sugar Grove, Ill. (7th)
2006 *East, Orlando, Fla. (3rd)
2005 Central, South Bend, Ind. (21st)
2004 Central, West Lafayette, Ind. (13th)
2003 Central, Manhattan, Kan. (12th)
2002 *West, Albuquerque, N.M. (T-10th)
1996 Central, Ann Arbor, Mich. (T-16th)
1995 Central, Montgomery (18th)
1992 Central, McKinney (T-11th)
* = advanced to NCAA Championships
RANKED TEAMS AT THE NCAA TUCSON REGIONAL
No. 6 Texas A&M, No. 13 San Diego State, No. 15 Texas Tech, No. 19 California, No. 27 Liberty, No. 30 Washington, No. 36 Pepperdine, No. 46 Oregon State
Rankings are based on the latest poll by Golfweek Magazine
