2010 Men's Golf - Year In Review
Trey Jones, Head Coach
Chris Malloy, Assistant Coach
Click here to see individual mug shots
2010 Men's Golf - Year In Review | |
| Coaching Staff Trey Jones, Head Coach Chris Malloy, Assistant Coach Click here to see individual mug shots |
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Michael Hebert, 6-1, Orlando
Doug Letson, 5-9, Tampa
Joaquin Lolas, 6-1, Lima, Peru
2010 Roster - By Name
L
T PY
R Name Hgt Cl Ltr Hometown (Prior School)
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Kyle Cobb 5-10 So Tallahassee (Leon/Central Florida)
* Wesley Graham 6-0 So * Port Orange (Spruce Creek)
* Michael Hebert 6-1 Fr Orlando (Circle Christian)
* Drew Kittleson 5-11 Jr ** Scottsdale, Ariz. (Pinnacle)
Cameron Knight 5-9 Sr *** Dade City (Wesley Chapel)
* Brooks Koepka 5-10 So * Wellington (Cardinal Newman)
* Seath Lauer 6-4 Sr *** Huntington, Ind. (Huntington North)
* Doug Letson 5-9 Fr Tampa (Plant)
Joaquin Lolas 6-1 Fr Lima, Peru (Markham)
2010 Conference Awards
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Brooks Koepka Atlantic Coast Conference - Co-Player of the Year
Atlantic Coast Conference - All-Conference
Seath Lauer Atlantic Coast Conference - All-Conference
All-Conference - 2
2010 All-Americans
Name Organization
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Drew Kittleson Golf Coaches Association of America - All-American - Honorable Mention
Brooks Koepka Golf Coaches Association of America - 3rd Team All-American
Golf Week - All-American - Honorable Mention
All-Americans - 2
2010 Schedule and Results
GAME |
SCORE |
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| Golfweek Conference Challenge August 30-September 1, 2009, Riverside, Iowa |
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| Olympia Fields Invitational September 18-20, 2009, Olympia Fields, Ill. |
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| Gary Koch Invitational October 3-4, 2009, Tampa, Fla. |
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| Brickyard Intercollegiate October 10-12, 2009, Macon, Ga. |
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| Hawaii Hilo Invitational February 3-5, 2010, Kohala, Hawaii |
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| Gator Invitational February 13-14, 2010, Gainesville, Fla. |
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| Seminole Intercollegiate March 12-14, 2010 |
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| Linger Longer Invitational March 26-28, 2010, Greensboro, N.C. |
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| Wolfpack Intercollegiate April 9-10, 2010, Raleigh, N.C. |
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| ACC Championship April 23-25, 2010, New London, N.C. |
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| Golden Ocala Invitational May 5-6, 2010, Ocala, Fla. |
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| NCAA Central Regional May 20-22, 2010, South Bend, Ind. |
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| NCAA Championship June 1-4, 2010, Ooltewah, Tenn. |
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| Texas Tech NCAA Match Play, Elite Eight, Ooltewah, Tenn. |
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| Augusta State NCAA Match Play, Final Four, Ooltewah, Tenn. |
EOY StatsRef Overall Home Away Neutral ------------------------------------------------ FSU record is 1- 1 0- 0 0- 0 1- 1
2010 Atlantic Coast Conference Results 1 Georgia Tech 841 2 Virginia 854 3t Duke 855 3t Wake Forest 855 5 Florida State 861 6 Clemson 862 7 North Carolina State 866 8 Virginia Tech 869 9t Maryland 878 9t North Carolina 878 11 Boston College 912
2010 EOY Stats
Name Tournaments Rounds Par Low Strokes Wins Top10 Ave ======================================================================== Brooks Koepka 12 33 15 65 2,373 0 5 71.91 Drew Kittleson 12 34 15 67 2,468 2 4 72.59 Seath Lauer 13 37 14 66 2,697 1 4 72.89 Kyle Cobb 1 3 2 69 219 0 0 73.00 Wesley Graham 12 34 13 67 2,486 0 3 73.12 Michael Hebert 10 28 9 64 2,060 0 2 73.57 Doug Letson 10 28 8 68 2,089 0 2 74.61 Cameron Knight 2 6 2 70 456 0 0 76.00
Florida State, Kittleson Earn Championships At GolfWeek Conference Challenge.
Kittleson leads Seminoles to team championship in first event of fall season.
RIVERSIDE, IA - The Florida State men's golf team rallied from four strokes down entering the final round and stormed to an eight stroke victory over Iowa to claim the championship of the Inaugural GolfWeek Conference Challenge at the Blue Top Ridge Club Golf Club. The Seminoles shot the second best team round of the three-round event (281) in the final round to earn the victory in the season opening tournament for men's collegiate golf.
Junior Drew Kittleson also staged a rally of his own as he shot a third-round best four-under par 68 over the final 18 holes to finish as the co-champion in the individual standings. He began the final round in a tie for second place and two strokes behind Iowa's Brad Hopfinger in the race for individual medalist honors. Kittleson shot a 68 in the final round while Hopfinger shot a 70 to draw the two players into a tie. Kittleson birdied four of his final seven holes to draw even at the end with Hopfinger.
The team championship was the first of the season and fifth in the last three seasons for the Seminoles under head coach Trey Jones. The Seminoles won the Inverness Intercollegiate, the Seminole Intercollegiate and the ACC Championship in 2008 and the Florida State Spring Break Invitational in 2009. The individual championship was the first of Kittleson's 22-match Seminole career.
"I told the team at breakfast this morning that winning would take a team effort and that each guy would have to complete for all 18 holes if were going to have a chance to win," said Jones. "We got that from our four counting scores."
The tournament, which featured 15 teams from 15 different conferences, saw Florida State improve its position in the team standings in both of the final two rounds. The Seminoles were in third place after the first round, in second place after the second round and won the event in the third round. Kittleson (Scottsdale, Az.) steadily moved himself up the individual rankings as he was in a tie for seventh after one round, a tie for second after the second round and tied for the lead following the final 18 holes. Kittleson finished with a career-best tournament score of 207 and was a career-best minus nine under par for the tournament.
In addition to Kittleson's tied for first place finish, senior Seath Lauer (Huntington, Ind.) and freshman Doug Letson (Tampa, Fla.) finished tied for ninth in the individual standings. The three finishes for Kittleson, Lauer and Letson allowed the Seminoles to complete the event as the only team with three players in the top 10 of the individual standings.
Kittleson began his charge with seven holes remaining in the final round. As he stepped onto the tee box at 12, he trailed Hopfinger by one stroke. Kittleson birdied holes 12, 13, 14 and 17 to finish at three under over the final seven holes and with a four under par 68 for the round. Hopfinger, meanwhile, birdied holes 15 and 17 to finish at two under for the final seven holes and with a two under par 70 for the round.
In 54 holes played during the tournament, Kittleson played only three holes over par and was above par for a cumulative total of five holes. Over his final 41 holes, Kittleson was an amazing 10 strokes under par with 12 birdies and only one hole over par (a bogey on the par four 15th hole in the third round). Kittleson did not card a single hole worse than bogey on any of his 54 holes.
"Drew winning his first collegiate tournament is big for him and the team," said Jones. "He was in a battle with a local player and overcame a deficit to get a win."
Lauer finished well with an even par 72 in the third round to complete the event with a one-under score of 215. His finish of tied for ninth marked his fourth career top-10 finish and first since finishing tied for ninth in the Spring 2008 Seminole Intercollegiate. Lauer finished with a flurry of birdies - he was under par over three of the final five holes to finish with an even par 72. He was minus two under par over the final two rounds of the event.
"I challenged Seath on the 14th tee and really showed his talent and competitive spirit," said Jones. "He was not having things go his way through 13 holes, regrouped and played like a man on the way in and birdied three of his final five holes and narrowly missing birdies on the other two. Turning around a round is harder than shooting a low number and it takes fortitude to refuse to lose."
Letson finished his first collegiate tournament with a two-under par score of 70. He finished with a one-under par scored of 215 and two scores at par or better as he began the event with an even par 72.
Sophomore Wesley Graham (Port Orange, Fla.) played his best round of golf in the third round as he finished with a one-under par score of 70. He finished in a tied for 26th place with a score of 220. Graham was followed by freshman Michael Hebert who finished tied for 41st place with a score of 224.
"Wesley continues to improve. He will need to build on this experience if he is going to take the next step," said Jones. He really played well today. He had one mistake on 18 but other than that he was really competitive."
Florida State plays in its next event at the Olympia Fields Invitational at the Olympia Fields Golf Club Sept. 18-20.
Inaugural GolfWeek Conference Challenge/Par 72/Final Team Results Blue Top Ridge Golf Course/Riverside, Iowa/August 30-Sept. 1, 2009 1. Florida State 853 T8. Xavier 881 2. Iowa 861 10. Illinois State 890 3. Coastal Carolina 866 T11. Texas Arlington 894 4. Cal 869 T11. Georgia Southern 894 5. Baylor 870 13. New Mexico State 897 6. M. Tennessee St. 875 14. South Florida 903 7. Vanderbilt 876 15. Memphis 911 T8. VCU 881
Name Place Rnd1 Rnd2 Rnd3 Total ========================= ===== ==== ==== ==== ===== Drew Kittleson 1t 70 69 68 207 Seath Lauer 9t 73 70 72 215 Doug Letson 9t 72 73 70 215 Wesley Graham 26t 76 73 71 220 Michael Hebert 41t 72 74 78 224
Golf 5th At Olympia Fields.
Lauer earns best finish of his career.
OLYMPIA FIELDS, IL - Florida State University senior Seath Lauer finished in a career-best tied for third place in the individual standings and the No. 25 Seminole men's golf team finished in fifth place in the team standings as play in the Olympia Fields Invitational came to a close on Sunday. The finish was Lauer's best since finishing in a tie for fourth place at the Linger Longer Invitational during the spring of 2007 while the team finish marked the second consecutive top-five finish for the Seminoles this fall. Florida State claimed the team championship at the GolfWeek Conference Challenge to open the fall season.
Arizona State, which is ranked No. 6 is this week's GolfWord/Nike Coaches' Poll, won the team championship with a two stroke victory over No. 1 ranked Oklahoma State. The Cowboys made up four shots in the final round but fell just short of overtaking the Sun Devils. The Seminoles finished in fifth place behind the No. 6 Sun Devils, No. 1 Oklahoma State, No. 23 Texas and No. 5 Stanford. The Seminoles finished ahead of No. 3 Georgia, No. 9 Florida, No. 10 Southern Cal and No. 12 Illinois.
Lauer (Huntington, Ind.) finished with a three-over par score of 213 in earning the second top five finish of his career. He spent the entire tournament in the top four of the individual standings as he finished with scores of 68-71-74. Lauer was below par for more than half of the tournament after coming within one stroke of tying his career-best with a 68 in the first round.
Lauer has now earned two top-10 individual finishes this fall with his tied for third place finish in this event and a tied for ninth place finish in the season-opening GolfWeek Conference Challenge. He has now earned consecutive top-10 finishes for the second time in his career.
Sophomore Brooks Koepka (Wellington, Fla.) shot a 73 in the final round and finished with a 220 total for the 54-hole event. He finished in a tie for 19th place in his first event of the fall and has now finished in the top 20 of five of his last six events.
Freshman Doug Letson (Tampa, Fla.) and junior Drew Kittleson (Scottsdale, Ariz.) played the best final rounds for the Seminoles and carded identical scores of two-over par 72. Letson finished tied for 24th in the individual standings with a 221 total to earn the second top 20 finish in his second career collegiate event. Kittleson finished with a 223 total and tied for 32nd in the individual standings. He was the co-medalist at the season-opening GolfWeek Conference Challenge. Sophomore Wesley Graham (Port Orange, Fla.) finished tied for 57th place.
Florida State plays in its third of four fall events as it travels to the Gary Koch Invitational at the Old Memorial Golf Course in Tampa Oct. 3-4.
Olympia Fields Invitational/Par 70/Sept. 18-20, 2009 Olympia Fields Country Club/Olympia Fields, Ill/Final Team Results 1. Arizona State 870 T8. Georgia 883 2. Oklahoma State 872 10. Augusta State 895 3. Texas 875 11. San Diego St. 901 4. Stanford 876 12. Northwestern 904 5. Florida State 877 T13. Indiana 905 6. Florida 878 T13. Wake Forest 905 7. Illinois 882 15. Purdue 922 T8. Southern Cal. 883
Name Place Rnd1 Rnd2 Rnd3 Total ========================= ===== ==== ==== ==== ===== Seath Lauer 3t 68 71 74 213 Brooks Koepka 19t 72 75 73 220 Doug Letson 24t 73 76 72 221 Drew Kittleson 32t 75 76 72 223 Wesley Graham 57t 78 76 78 232
Men's Golf Wins Gary Koch Championship.
Seminoles' Lauer finishes in second place.
TAMPA, FL - The No. 6 ranked Florida State University men's golf team set a 54 hole tournament record in winning the team championship of the Gary Koch Invitational at the Old memorial Golf Club as play in the three round event came to a close Sunday. The Seminoles began the day four strokes behind Texas Tech and, with the best team round of the third round, finished an amazing 16 strokes ahead of the Red Raiders in the final standings.
Seminole Senior Seath Lauer finished in second place in the individual standings as he carded a two-under par score of 70 and finished with a career-best 201 score for the three-round tournament. He finished two strokes behind Kyle Kopsick of Auburn who carded a tournament record 203 individual score.
Florida State's victory was its second of the year after claiming the championship of the season-opening GolfWeek Conference Challenge. The Seminoles' have earned three top five finishes this fall - first at the Gary Koch and GolfWeek Conference Challenge tournaments and fifth at the Olympia Fields Invitational. Lauer has now earned three top-10 individual finishes in the Seminoles' three events this fall; second at the Gary Koch Invitational, tied for third at the Olympia Fields Invitational and tied for ninth at the GolfWeek Conference Challenge.
The No. 6 ranked Seminoles finished ahead of No. 9 North Carolina, No. 10 Florida and No. 16 North Florida.
"The players knew this was a big event for us for the last two weeks," said head coach Trey Jones. "Old Memorial is a great golf course where the founders and members have been great to our program."
Lauer (Huntington, Ind.) came within two strokes of earning the first individual victory of his career. He carded a career-best 66 in the first round and 67 in the second round and held a one stroke lead over Kopsick. Despite carding a two-under par 70 in the final round he was bested by Kopsick who carded a second round 63 and a final round 66.
Sophomore Brooks Koepka (Wellington, Fla.) earned a fourth place finish with a career-best 205 score. He finished with scores of 68-70-67. Koepka came within two places of tying his career-best finish of second at the spring 2009 Florida State Spring Break Invitational.
"Seath is playing like a first team All-American and Brooks is not far behind," said Jones. "Michael and Doug bring talent and competitive spirit to our team. Drew is really struggling with his ball striking but we know that will change during the off-season."
Freshman Michael Hebert (Orlando, Fla.) finished in a tie for 10th place to earn to best finish of his Seminole career. He finished with scores of 70-70-71 to finish with a five under par score of 211 with three scores under par in the same tournament for the first time in his career.
Freshman Doug Letson (Tampa, Fla.) finished in a tie for 32nd place while senior Drew Kittleson (Scottsdale, Ariz.) finished in a tie for 59th place.
"We have played three events and I believe we have had the low final round in each of those tournaments," said Jones. "That shows me a great deal about our players confidence and the great thing about winning is that it breeds confidence."
Florida State closes its season at the Brickyard Intercollegiate at the Brickyard Golf Course in Macon, Ga. Oct. 10-12.
Gary Koch Intercollegiate/Par 72/Oct. 3-4, 2009
Old Memorial Golf Club/Tampa, Fla./Final Team Results
1. Florida State 834 9. Georgia Southern 862
2. Texas Tech 850 10. Ole Miss 866
T3. Virginia 852 11. Kentucky 870
Florida 852 12. E. Tennessee St. 871
5. North Florida 854 13. North Carolina 874
6. Augusta State 855 14. UAB 877
7. Auburn 858 15. South Florida 902
8. LSU 861
Name Place Rnd1 Rnd2 Rnd3 Total ========================= ===== ==== ==== ==== ===== Seath Lauer 2 66 67 70 203 Brooks Koepka 4 68 70 67 205 Michael Hebert 10t 70 70 71 211 Cameron Knight * 30t 70 70 76 216 Doug Letson 32t 72 73 72 217 Drew Kittleson 59t 70 78 75 223
Seminoles Finish 7th At Brickyard.
Final round of event rained out.
MACON, GA - The final round of the Brickyard Collegiate Men's Golf Championship was cancelled because of heavy rain. The third and final round had started and each of the 15 teams was on the course before the weather forced a stoppage in play. All of the scores in the third round were wiped out and the results reverted back to the completion of the second round.
Florida State finished in a tie for seventh place in the team standings. The Seminoles' finish marked the first time in four events this fall that they had finished outside of the top five. Florida State claimed the team championships at the GolfWeek Conference Challenge and the Gary Koch Intercollegiate while finishing in fifth place at the Olympia Fields Invitational.
Seminole sophomore Brooks Koepka finished in a tie for fifth place with a three-under par total of 141 for the 36 holes played. He carded an even par 72 in the first round and a three-under par 69 in the second round. Koepka earned two top-five individual finishes this fall - fourth at the Gary Koch Invitational and tied for fifth in this event.
With the end of the Brickyard Collegiate, the Seminoles' fall season comes to a close. They will open their spring season at the Hawaii Hilo Invitational Feb. 3-5, 2010.
Brickyard Intercollegiate/Par 72/Final Team Results Brickyard at Riverside/Macon, Ga./October 10-12, 2009 1. Augusta State 563 T7. Virginia Tech 588 T2. Clemson 576 T10. North Florida 589 T2. Chattanooga 576 T10. Charlotte 589 4. Georgia 579 12. Georgia Tech 593 5. VCU 584 13. Mercer 594 6. LSU 585 14. Penn State 596 T7. Ole Miss 588 15. Michigan 602 T7. Florida State 588
Name Place Rnd1 Rnd2 Total ========================= ===== ==== ==== ===== Brooks Koepka 5t 72 69 141 Wesley Graham * 12t 74 69 143 Drew Kittleson 35t 74 73 147 Seath Lauer 35t 73 74 147 Doug Letson 68t 77 77 154 Michael Hebert 71t 79 76 155
Seminoles Finish 10th In Hawaii.
Koepka and Graham tie personal best for low round score.
WAIKOLOA, HI - Florida State University sophomore Brooks Koepka shot a career-low tying 65 in the third round and finished in second place in the individual standings and the No. 4 ranked Florida State men's golf team finished in a tied for 10th place in the team standings as play in the 20th Annual Mauni Lani Invitational at the Mauna Lani North Course came to a close. Koepka tied his personal bests for single round score (65) and individual finish (second) while coming within four strokes of tying his career best for tournament score (210). He finished one stroke behind Bobby Hudson of Texas in the race for the individual championship. Hudson carded a 66 in the final round to claim the individual championship.
Birdies on the final hole by three Stanford University players secured the Cardinal the team championship in the event. Stanford, Oregon and Washington were tied as their players headed for their final holes. With the birdies, the Cardinal turned in an 866 to earn the team championship. The Cardinal defeated Oregon and Washington by three strokes to win the first championship of the collegiate golf season.
Koepka (Wellington, Fla.) played a nearly flawless round as he was minus three on his first nine and minus four on his second nine. Starting on the 10th hole, he birdied three of his first nine holes and made the turn at three under par. He played as well on his back nine with two birdies and an eagle on the par five seventh hole. It marked the second time during the tournament that Koepka had earned an eagle on that same hole.
Koepka carded 14 of his 54 holes during the tournament under par and was never more than two strokes over par at any time during the tournament. He was at even or under par for each of his final 21 holes of play.
Sophomore Wesley Graham (Port Orange, Fla.) also played well as he shot a career-best tying 68 in the final round and finished in a tie for 10th place in the individual standings with a three-day total of 217. He shot a combined total of 140 over his final two rounds to earn the second top 10 finish of his career. Graham was in 50th place after a first round score of 77, move into a tie for 30th after a second round 72 and moved into 10th place with his final round score of 68.
The Seminoles play their second spring event at the University of Florida's Gator Invitational Feb. 13-14 in Gainesville, Fla.
1 Stanford University 297 283 286 866 T 2 Oregon, U. of 291 290 288 869 T 2 Washington, U. of 291 287 291 869 4 Texas 297 292 281 870 5 Oklahoma State 299 285 287 871 6 Georgia Tech 304 291 282 877 7 Texas Tech 296 298 287 881 8 UCLA 288 301 296 885 9 Southern California 293 301 292 886 T10 Arizona State U. 313 298 278 889 T10 Florida State Univ. 306 302 281 889 12 Oregon State U. 302 298 294 894 13 San Francisco, U. of 312 294 290 896 14 TCU 310 297 293 900 15 Colorado 304 306 293 903 16 UC Davis 306 306 292 904 17 San Jose State 308 318 287 913 18 Hawaii, Univ. of 311 302 310 923 19 Sonoma State U. 331 306 299 936 20 Rhode Island, U. of 324 311 304 939 21 Hawaii-Hilo, U. of 316 328 305 949 22 CSU-East Bay 316 340 313 969
Name Place Rnd1 Rnd2 Rnd3 Total ========================= ===== ==== ==== ==== ===== Brooks Koepka 2 73 72 65 210 Wesley Graham 10t 77 72 68 217 Michael Hebert 63t 78 78 73 229 Seath Lauer 77t 78 80 75 233 Cameron Knight 105t 82 82 76 240
Golf Second At Gator Invitational.
Freshman Hebert leads Seminoles in individual standings.
GAINESVILLE, FL - Freshman Michael Hebert finished in a career best tied for seventh place to lead the No. 9 ranked Florida State men's golf team to a second place finish at the Gator Invitational at the Mark Bostic Golf Course at the University of Florida. Hebert finished with a four over par score of 214 to lead four Seminoles in the top 15 of the individual standings of Florida State's second tournament of the spring season.
Florida outpaced the 14 team field to win the championship by 18 strokes over Florida State and by 28 strokes over Chattanooga. The host Gators finished with the best team scores in the final two rounds of the tournament. Jonathan Randolph of Old Miss scored a three under par 67 in the final round to win the individual championship with an even par total of 210 for the three round event. He finished with a one stroke advantage of Andrew Loupe of LSU.
Hebert finished with his career best finish (tied for seventh) and the second best total score of his career (214). He bettered his previous best finish of tied for 10th at the Gary Koch Invitational. Hebert finished his best career single round score of 67 in the first round of this event.
Junior Drew Kittleson led the Seminoles in the third round with a team-best one under par score of 69. His 215 score allowed him to gain the ninth career top 15 finish of his career. Also finishing in the top 15 were senior Seath Lauer (tied for 15th) and sophomore Brooks Koepka (tied for 15th).
Gator Invitational/Par 70/February 13-14, 2010/Final Florida State Results Mark Bostic Golf Course/University of Florida/Gainesville, Fla. 1 4 Florida 283 279 279 841 2 16 Florida State 283 291 285 859 3 40 UT-Chattanooga 282 289 298 869 4 Lamar 295 294 281 870 T5 26 Duke 300 288 284 872 T5 34 Louisiana State 297 297 278 872 7 29 North Florida 296 291 286 873 8 Central Florida 296 292 291 879 9 Georgia Southern 301 291 291 883 10 Mississippi 299 289 298 886 11 Alabama-Birmingham 297 294 299 890 12 Coastal Carolina 300 304 294 898 13 Mississippi State 302 303 295 900 14 Georgia State 300 304 297 901
Name Place Rnd1 Rnd2 Rnd3 Total ========================= ===== ==== ==== ==== ===== Michael Hebert 7t 67 75 72 214 Drew Kittleson 13t 72 74 69 215 Seath Lauer 15t 73 72 71 216 Brooks Koepka 15t 71 72 73 216 Wesley Graham 42t 74 73 76 223 Doug Letson * 71 81 79 76 236
'Noles Knock Down Another.
FSU men score third win of year at Seminole Collegiate.
TALLAHASSEE, FL - Florida State's Seath Lauer and Wesley Graham led Sunday's winning charge to the Seminole Intercollegiate tournament championship in a suspense-filled finish at Southwood Golf Course.
The Seminoles won their third tournament of the school year, slipping past South Carolina by a one-stroke margin after top-ranked golfer Brooks Koepka was disqualified for signing an incorrect scorecard, negating what would have been a nine-shot victory.
Florida State had already secured the team title - its second Seminole Intercollegiate in three seasons - when South Carolina's Paul Woodbury outlasted Lauer with on the fourth playoff hole. Lauer, the Seminoles' senior captain, shared low-stroke honors with Woodbury at 1-under, 212 after 54 holes. Woodbury won with a par on the 427-yard 18th hole; the fourth time the duo traversed the par-four finishing hole.
In total, the three-day affair hosted by Southwood for the first time in the tournament's lengthy history, was a wild ride of emotions for FSU coach Trey Jones and the Seminoles.
"I saw a seven-shot lead go to one and just a tough day on the golf course (Saturday)," Jones said. "I challenged the guys last night and all I told them was, 'You can't play defense in this sport. Make somebody beat you tomorrow. Don't let anybody walk out of this town with our trophy just because we didn't come ready to play.'
"I can't say how happy I am with how they came out today from the start and they played all the way through."
The Seminoles opened the final round precariously clinging to a one-shot lead over ninth-ranked South Carolina, which trailed FSU by 10 strokes after the opening round but mounted a charge during Saturday's blustery second round conditions. Despite an individual medalist Woodbury, the Gamecocks could not cut into the Seminoles' lead over the final 18 holes.
Lauer had a lot to do with that, posting a final-round, 1-under 70 for his first career finish atop the leaderboard after 54 holes.
"I played the final four holes (of regulation) like I knew I had a chance, which I did," said Lauer, who matched his best career finish following the playoff setback. "It's a good learning experience. A four-hole playoff is not the most fun thing to do, but to put myself in position to win again is a good feeling. I didn't feel really good about my golf game going in but I got really motivated the day before (the tournament) and I came in with a better mindset."
So did sophomore Wesley Graham, who got off to a stunning eagle-birdie-birdie start, on the way to a final-round 68 that tied him for the low round of the day and was worth a share of third place.
"I was kind of in the zone the whole day," Graham said. "The first three holes I didn't hit a bad golf shot - perfect shots, perfect putts - and everything was going in. It was a pretty amazing start."
Koepka was on pace to join his teammates at the top of the leaderboard until his ill-fated scoring error, but the Seminoles were able to overcome the mistake as Drew Kittleson recovered from three bogeys over the first four holes to shoot 73 and tie for 20th. Kittleson played the final 14 holes at 1-under par.
Freshman Michael Hebert carded a 78 on Sunday and factored into the scoring, finished tied for 38th in the 75-player field.
"The team played great," said Lauer. "I really feel good about that, especially for the future.
"This is just a strong group. We wanted to win this golf tournament. We didn't want to win it by a small margin. This is our home golf course and we wanted to show it's our home golf course. I think (Saturday) was a little slap in the face to our whole team and it kind of made us wake up a little bit. Everybody's composure looked really good, especially at the start of the day. I could just tell we were going to play well."
So did Jones, who likes the trend his team is developing, with another strong final round finish.
"When the guys are around the lead, they know what to do," said Jones. "Golf is a sport you don't get to win as much. If you get two wins in a year on the PGA Tour, that's a great year."
To get their third win of the year - under testy conditions, in the face of adversity, against a solid field and at their home course - in early March, has the Seminoles pointing in a special direction.
Seminole Intercollegiate/Par 71/March 12-13, 2010/Final Team Results Southwood Golf Course/Florida State University/Tallahassee, Fla. 1 11 Florida State 278 298 289 865 2 9 South Carolina 288 289 289 866 3t 34 Arkansas 293 292 288 873 3t North Texas, U. of 291 289 293 873 5 Vanderbilt 292 292 291 875 6 Mississippi St. U. 289 304 283 876 7t North Carolina 285 295 307 887 7t 43 Baylor 288 304 295 887 9 Troy Univ. 291 312 294 897 10 Georgia State Univ. 299 305 295 899 11 George Mason Univ. 300 315 292 907 12 Mercer University 297 304 307 908 13 Western Carolina U. 303 311 298 912 14 Cincinnati, U. of 5 318 310 299 927
Name Place Rnd1 Rnd2 Rnd3 Total ========================= ===== ==== ==== ==== ===== Seath Lauer 1t 69 73 70 212 Wesley Graham 3t 70 75 68 213 Doug Letson * 5t 70 71 73 214 Kyle Cobb * 20t 71 79 69 219 Drew Kittleson 20t 69 77 73 219 Michael Hebert 38t 70 77 78 225 Brooks Koepka dq 71 73 144
Golf Finshes 7th At Liinger Longer.
Sophomore graham leads seminoles in individual standings.
GREENSBORO, GA - Sophomore Wesley Graham carded a 71 in the final round and finished in a tie for 22nd place in the individual standings and the Seminole men's golf team finished in seventh place in the team standings at the Linger Longer Invitational at the Landing at Reynolds Plantation. Graham carded the Seminoles' lowest single round score of the event to lead Florida State to its eighth top 10 finish in eight events this year. The Seminoles have won three events this year - the GolfWeek Challenge, the Gary Koch Intercollegiate and the Seminole Intercollegiate - with two regular season and at least two post season events remaining in their schedule.
It marked the first time in his career that Graham has finished on top of the Seminoles' leader board in a tournament while his score of 71 marked the third time in the his last six rounds that he has carded a score of 71 or better. Graham carded scores of 70 and 68 in finishing in a tie for third place in the Seminole Intercollegiate earlier during the month of March.
No. 2 ranked Oklahoma State won the team championship with a two stroke victory over Alabama. The Cowboys were tied for first after the first round of play, took over sole possession of the lead in the second round and held on to beat the Crimson Tide with an under par performance in the third round. Bud Cauley of Alabama, who led the individual race wire to wire, claimed a four stroke victory over Kevin Tway of Oklahoma State.
Graham (Port Orange, Fla.) played his best golf of the 54-hole tournament on the final day as he carded the only under par round of the weekend for the Seminoles. He was as many as two strokes under par with three birdies on his first 15 holes and closed his round with a birdie on the 18th hole. Graham carded 10 birdies during the weekend with five coming in the first round and four in the final round. He birdied the 18th hole in both the first and third rounds and finished with a 222 total.
Sophomore Brooks Koepka (Wellington, Fla.) improved his score in each of his last two rounds and closed with a tournament best 73 in the final round. After carding a 76 in the first round, he closed with scores of 74 and 73 (three over par) in the second and third rounds. Koepka played in back nine at even par with two birdies after finishing his front nine at one over par in Sunday's final round. Koepka finished the tournament with nine birdies and 41 holes at par or better during the event.
Junior Drew Kittleson (Scottsdale, Ariz.) also played his best round of the tournament with a 74 in the final round and finished with a total of 225. He carded a 75 in round one and a 76 in the second round.
Senior Seath Lauer (Huntington, Ind) and freshman Michael Hebert (Orlando, Fla.) finished in a tie for 50th and a tie for 68th place respectively.
"It is unreasonable to expect an individual player or team to play at a high level for an entire season," said head coach Trey Jones. "We know when we play well we are competitive with anyone; we need to improve our play when we don't have everything clicking.
"I have never been one to over evaluate our team when we don't play well," continued Jones. "I learn more about our guys when we have a chance to win."
Florida State continues its spring schedule as it travels to play at the NC State Wolfpack Intercollegiate march 9-10.
Linger Longer Invitational/Par 72/Final Team Results The Landing at Reynolds Plantation Golf Course/Greensboro, Ga./March 26-28 1. Oklahoma State 865 9. Kennesaw State 902 2. Alabama 867 10. Oklahoma 906 3. Texas A&M 874 11. South Alabama 908 4t. Georgia Tech 879 12. Louisville 901 4t. Georgia 879 13. Coastal Carolina 914 6. Furman 886 14. USC Aiken 918 7. Florida State 895 15. San Jose State 936 8. Charlotte 897 16. Mercer DNF
Name Place Rnd1 Rnd2 Rnd3 Total ========================= ===== ==== ==== ==== ===== Wesley Graham 22t 73 78 71 222 Brooks Koepka 25t 76 74 73 223 Drew Kittleson 30t 75 76 74 225 Seath Lauer 50t 77 75 78 230 Michael Hebert 68t 84 75 76 235 Doug Letson * 82t 82 76 83 241
Men's Golf Finishes Fourth.
Koepka leads Seminoles at Wolfpack Intercollegiate.
RALEIGH, NC - Seminole junior Brooks Koepka finished in a tie for seventh place in the individual standings and the No. 10 Florida State men's golf team finished in fourth place in the team standings as play in the Wolfpack Intercollegiate came to a close on the Lonnie Poole Golf Course at NC State. Koepka carded a one-under par 70 in the final round to finish to a 217 total and earn his third top-15 individual finish of the spring season.
North Carolina won the team championship with a 17 stroke victory over Duke. The Tar Heels finished first among the nine ACC teams that participated in the event. Florida State finished four strokes out of third place and nine strokes behind the second place Blue Devils. Adam Long of Duke, who shot a 68 in the final round, took home the individual medalist honors.
"The objective this week was for each player to get their games going in the right direction as we head to the ACC Championship," said head coach Trey Jones.
Koepka played his best golf of the three round tournament over the final 18 holes as he finished with a one under par score of 70. He was one under after his first nine and put an exclamation on his round with an eagle on the par five 15th hole to move to under par for the round.
"Brooks continues to show his development as he gave himself a chance to win the golf tournament going into the final 9 holes without playing at his best," said Jones.
Senior Seath Lauer, a candidate for the Ben Hogan Award as the nation's top collegiate golfer, finished in a tie for 18th place in the individual standings. He closed the tournament with scores of 71 in the second round 72 in the third round for a total of 220. Lauer was one over par over the final two rounds of the event.
"Seath is close to playing well," said Jones. "His ball striking was better than last week. He made a few birdies but missed a few too many short puts that prevented him from scoring well."
Sophomore Wesley Graham also closed the event well as he carded a one-over par 72 in the final round. After shooting an uncharacteristic 78 in the first round, he closed with scores of 74 and 72 for a 224 total. Graham moved up by 12 spots in the individual standings with his final round score.
With its fourth place finish, the Seminoles have finished in the top 10 in each of their five events this spring and have earned six top five team finishes.
The Seminoles will next play in the ACC Tournament at the Old North State Club at Uwharrie Point in Greensboro, N.C. April 23-25. The Seminoles won the first ACC Championship in school history on that course in 2008.
Wolfpack Invitational/Par 71/Final Team Results Lonnie Pool Golf Course/Raleigh, N.C./April 9-10, 2010 1. North Carolina 860 10. Wake Forest 892 2. Duke 867 11. Virginia 893 3. NC State 872 12. Michigan 896 4. Florida State 876 13. New Orleans 898 5. Purdue 885 14. Maryland 900 6. Georgia Tech 887 15. Virginia Tech 901 7. Coastal Carolina 888 16. Charleston 908 8t. VCU 890 17. UNC Wilmington 909 8t. East Carolina 890
Name Place Rnd1 Rnd2 Rnd3 Total ========================= ===== ==== ==== ==== ===== Brooks Koepka 7t 74 73 70 217 Seath Lauer 19t 77 71 72 220 Wesley Graham 41t 78 74 72 224 Drew Kittleson 53t 74 68 85 227 Doug Letson 70t 79 78 73 230
Golf Finishes 5th At ACC's.
Koepka leads Seminoles with sixth place finish.
UWHARRIE POINT, NC - Sophomore Brooks Koepka carded a final round 67 and finished in a tie for sixth place in the individual standings to led Florida State to a fifth place finish in the team standings as play in the 57th Annual Atlantic Coast Conference Men's Golf Championship at the Old North State Club at Uwharrie Point came to a close. The Seminoles played their best collective round during the tournament in the final round as they had three golfers (Koepka, sophomore Wesley Graham and senior Seath Lauer) finish at par or better to help the team earn their third top five team finish in the last four seasons in the league championship tournament.
Georgia Tech won its second consecutive and fourth team championship in the last five years with a seven stroke victory over Virginia. The Yellow Jackets took over the lead in the first round and held on to win the championship as they placed two players in the top five of the individual standings. Chesson Hadley of Georgia Tech won his first individual ACC championship with a two stroke victory over Virginia's Will Hadley.
Florida's State's team score of 282 on the final day was the best of the 11 teams competing in the event in the final round. The Seminoles improved from a tie for ninth place after the first round to a tie for seventh place after the second round and moved into fifth place in the final standings.
"We talked last night about how one of our goals was to play all 54 holes," said head coach Trey Jones. "After a very frustrating start the guys showed a lot of pride and resiliency today as they finished with a strong round."
Koepka (Wellington, Fla.) carded the best individual round of the last 18 holes to finish in a tie for fifth place. He finished 21 spaces better in the individual standings this season as compared to last season when he finished in a tied for 27th place in the individual standings. Koepka was six strokes under par over the final two rounds of play and moved up from a tie for 24th after shooting a one over par 73 in the first round to earn his fourth top five individual finish of the season.
"Brooks showed why I believe he is the ACC Player of the Year as he shot a 67 in 25 miles per hour wind," said Jones.
Kopeka earned the Seminoles' top finish in the ACC Championship since Jonas Blixt earned medalist honors in leading the Seminoles to the team championship in 2008.
Koepka was nearly flawless in the final round with five birdies and 18 holes at par or better - he did not score a hole above par of his final 18 holes. In fact, he finished the final 21 holes of the event at par or better. He pared his first hole of the final round and it was off to the races for Koepka, who will vie for conference player of the year honors. After a birdie on hole No. 1, he earned birdies on holes four, eight, 13 and 18 to finish at five under par. Koepka spent the final 28 holes of the tournament at or below par.
"Believe it or not, today was another struggle for me," said Koepka. "The conditions were tough and I still don't have my game where I want it to be but I got around the course and made the best of things. Hopefully with this being the end of school I can put in some more work to get my game to where I am happy with it. Team wise, we had another good final round so hopefully we can build on this as we move into regionals."
Sophomore Wesley Graham (Port Orange, Fla.) played his best round of golf since Feb. 5 at the University of Hawaii Invitational as he closed the tournament with a three under par score of 69. He was five strokes better than his score of 74 in the first round and seven strokes better than his second round score in finishing with a 219 total and in a tie for 27th place. He, too, carded his first hole of the afternoon and finished the day with a team-high tying five birdies. Graham played his front at one under par with two birdies and played his back nine at three under par with two birdies. He scored as many birdies in the final round (five) as he did in his first two rounds combined (five).
"Wesley played a good final round but in order for our team to win we have to have one good round out of him," said Jones.
Senior Seath Lauer (Huntington, Ind.) completed a marvelous tournament with an even par 72 in the final round. He finished in a tie for 12th place in the individual standings with a two under par total of 214. Lauer finished strong with two birdies on his back nine and a two under par total on those nine holes to finish at even par. He carded Lauer finished tied with Koepka for the team lead with 13 birdies in this tournament.
"Regardless of how we felt because of where we were in the team standings entering the last day, we still needed to play well for our team and our program in preparation for regionals," said Lauer. "The year is far from over - we have a lot of great golf to play and a lot to learn from each round. We are going to work hard this week to finish the semester well and then concentrate on playing strong golf in the NCAA regionals and hopefully the NCAA championship."
"Seath showed his leadership and played well throughout the event in finishing in 12th place," said Jones. "He had a solid finish when you have a field as strong as the one that was in this ACC Championship."
Freshman Doug Letson (Tampa, Fla.) finished in a tie for 23rd place with a two-over par total of 218. He led the team with a four under par score of 68 in the second round and finished as the Seminoles' third leading golfer in the ACC Championship. After the first 11 holes of the final round he was one under par - putting him five strokes under par on the second and third days of the event.
"Doug gained valuable experience competing in his first ACC Championship," said Jones. "This experience will certainly carry on to future championships."
Junior Drew Kittleson (Scottsdale, Ariz.) finished the event with a three over par score of 75 and a 226 total for the three round tournament.
"After our guys finish strong with their finals this week, we will begin preparing for the NCAA regionals and we will work very hard in our preparations," said Jones.
The Seminoles, who entered the ACC Championship as the No. 9 ranked team in the nation, will now participate in the NCAA Tournament at one of six regional sites May 20-22. The sites are: The Capital City Country Club (Alpharetta, Ga.), The Warren Golf Course (Notre Dame, Ind.), The Carlton Oaks Country Club (San Diego, Calif.), The Traditions Club (College Station, Texas), The Gold Mountain Country Club (Bremerton, Wash.) and the Yale University Golf Club (New Haven, Conn.) The Championship finals are June 1-6 at the Honors Course at the University Tennessee Chattanooga in Chattanooga, Tenn. The selections will be announced on May 3.
Atlantic Coast Conference Championship/Par 72/Final Team Results Old North State Club at Uwharrie Point, N.C./April 23-25, 2010 1. Georgia Tech 841 7. NC State 866 2. Virginia 854 8. Virginia Tech 869 T3. Duke 855 T9. Maryland 878 T3. Wake Forest 855 T9. North Carolina 878 5. Florida State 861 11. Boston College 912 6. Clemson 862
Name Place Rnd1 Rnd2 Rnd3 Total ========================= ===== ==== ==== ==== ===== Brooks Koepka 5t 73 71 67 211 Seath Lauer 12t 71 71 72 214 Doug Letson 23t 76 68 74 218 Wesley Graham 27t 74 76 69 219 Drew Kittleson 46 75 76 75 226
Golf Third At Golden Ocala.
Kittleson leads Seminoles in tune-up for NCAA Tournament.
OCALA, FL - Florida State University junior Drew Kittleson finished in a tie for fifth place in the individual standings and the No. 10 Seminole men's golf team finished in third place in the team standings at the second annual Golden Ocala Invitational at the Golden Ocala Golf Club. The event was a one-day, 36-hole event tournament designed to give five teams from the state of Florida a chance to play against outside competition between the teams' respective conference tournaments and the NCAA regional championships.
Florida, the host team, won the event as they outdistanced the field with a 31 under par score of 545. Playing on a par 72 layout, the Gators finished 16 strokes under par in the first round and 15 strokes under par in the second round. The Gators were followed in the team standings by North Florida, Florida State, UCF and USF. Florida's Andres Echavarria earned medalist honors with a 12-under par total of 132. The Gators finished 1-2-3-4 in the individual standings.
Kittleson (Scottsdale, Ariz.) played his best golf of the spring season as he finished in a tie for fifth place with a three-under par score of 141. It was his best 36-hole score of the spring and second best of his junior season. Kittleson's 141 total for the two rounds played in this event was rivaled by only his 139 total for the first 36 holes of the fall season opening GolfWeek Challenge. He shared medalist honors in that event with a nine under par score. Kittleson's under par score was his first since finishing at nine under par in the GolfWeek Challenge in September.
Freshmen Doug Letson (Tampa, Fla.) and Michael Hebert (Orlando, Fla.) finished in a tie for 11th place and in 14th place respectively. The finish for Letson was the second best of his first season (he finished in a tie for ninth in the GolfWeek Challenge) as it was for Hebert (he finished in a tie for seventh place in the Gator Invitational in March).
The Seminoles, who entered the Golden Ocala as the No. 10 ranked team in the nation, will now participate in the NCAA Tournament at one of six regional sites May 20-22. The sites are: The Capital City Country Club (Alpharetta, Ga.), The Warren Golf Course (Notre Dame, Ind.), The Carlton Oaks Country Club (San Diego, Calif.), The Traditions Club (College Station, Texas), The Gold Mountain Country Club (Bremerton, Wash.) and the Yale University Golf Club (New Haven, Conn.) The Championship finals are June 1-6 at the Honors Course at the University Tennessee Chattanooga in Chattanooga, Tenn. The selections will be announced on May 10.
Golden Ocala Invitational/Par 72/Final Team Results Golden Ocala Golf Club/Ocala, Fla./May 6, 2010 1. Florida 272 273 545 2. North Florida 288 286 574 3. Florida State 284 284 578 4. UCF 286 283 579 5. South Florida 303 298 601
Name Place Rnd1 Rnd2 Total ========================= ===== ==== ==== ===== Drew Kittleson 5t 69 72 141 Doug Letson * 11t 70 73 143 Michael Hebert 14 70 74 144 Wesley Graham 15t 71 74 145 Seath Lauer 20 74 74 148 Brooks Koepka 28 76 80 156
Golf Advances To NCAA Finals.
Kittleson earns medalist honors at NCAA Central Regional Championhip.
SOUTH BEND, IN - The Florida State men's golf team - led by individual medalist Drew Kittleson -- advanced to the NCAA Championship finals with a second place finish at the NCAA Central Region Championship on the Warren Course at the University Notre Dame as play in the event concluded Saturday. The Seminoles advanced to the NCAA Championship finals for the first time since 2007, for the second time under head coach Trey Jones and for the 19th time in school history since making their first appearance in 1956. The Championship finals will be played at the Honors Course at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga June 1-4.
Kittleson was outstanding throughout the three round tournament with scores of 69-67-68 for a six under par total of 204. He was followed in the individual standings by sophomore Wesley Graham, who finished in a tie for second in the individual standings with scores of 67-69-70 for a five under par score of 205. Freshman Michael Hebert came within one stroke of tying the school record for lowest single round score with a six under par score of 64 in the final round and finished in a tie for 11th place with a one under par total of 209.
"I am really proud of our guys," said head coach Trey Jones. "Our motto all week was play to win and we did that. From start to finish that was our best tournament of the year. Playing the final two rounds on this course at nine under par is quite an accomplishment and is playing at a high level of golf. We had a great week of preparation prior to the tournament and I feel that was a key to us getting off to a good start on Thursday."
The Seminoles established several school bests in advancing to the NCAA Championship finals including best team finish in a regional championship (second), best individual finish in a regional championship (Kittleson, first), best team score in a regional championship (834), best team score vs. par in a regional championship (plus four), number of individual scores in the 60's in a regional championship (six), and lowest tournament score in a regional championship (204 by Kittleson).
The top five teams from the NCAA Central will travel to play in the NCAA Championship finals. The Seminoles will be joined at the Honors Course by Stanford (the regional champion), Florida, Duke and LSU. A total of 30 teams and six individuals from across the nation will play for team and individual championships in the finals round.
Kittleson (Scottsdale, Az.) was stellar throughout the 54-hole event and as he earned his second career victory with three scores in the 60's. The win was Kittleson's first outright victory as he finished in a tie for first place in the Inaugural GolfWeek Collegiate Challenge during the fall of 2009. Kittleson established personal best records for 36 hole score (136), tournament score (204) and tournament score vs. par (minus 6).
"I am very happy that I won the individual title at the regional but most importantly, I happy for our team," said Kittleson. "That we get to continue playing and now have the chance to compete for a national championship is a great feeling. We have to play as well as we know we can play when we get to nationals and we will have a chance to do some great things for our program, our school and our coaching staff. The way we played this week just proved once again that we can compete with any team in the country. We should be a very confident team when we arrive in Tennessee for the finals."
Kittleson's first place finish was his best placing in three career regional appearances. He finished in a tie for 60th in the NCAA Southeast Regional Championship in 2009.
"Drew was solid all week," said Jones. "I don't think he was over par at any point in time. He drove the ball well and had his short game working - two things this course demands. Earning medalist honors at an NCAA regional championship is a great accomplishment.
Graham also continued his spring season upswing as he earned the best individual finish as a Seminole as he carded the best three round tournament score of his career. His score of 67 in the first round of the event also marked a career best for the sophomore who has played in 11 of the Seminoles' events this year and who had helped the team to three tournament championships and five top two team finishes.
"It is always good when you have two players on the same team competing for the individual title," said Graham. "Congratulations for Drew for the championship - he played lights out all week long. I feel like I played a solid three days of golf - I didn't lose a ball throughout the entire week and that helped a lot. Coach Jones was really helpful to me this weekend; he helped me get around the course with some great shots. We are a confident group right now and are really excited to play as a team in the finals."
Graham began the day off well for the Seminoles as he was one of two Seminoles who had to finish second round play before starting play in the final round. He birdied the two holes he had to play to complete his second round and then finished with an even par score of 70 in the third round. He round of 70 in the third round was his first round at par after carding scores of 67 and 68 in the first two rounds.
"Wes played his best tournament as a Seminole," said Jones. I am confident that this performance will be another stepping stone in his young collegiate career. It was fun to watch two of our players competing for medalist honors - and neither of them backed down from the other."
The day may have been stolen by a freshman - Hebert - who was not in the Seminoles' starting line-up for the ACC Championship in late April. Hebert came within one stroke to tying Matt Savage's school record of 63 in the spring 2009 Florida State Spring Break Invitational at the Don Veller Seminole Golf Course in Tallahassee.
"Today, I just went out there and played smart golf," said Hebert. "I found the positive in every situation I put myself in on the golf course and it paid off."
Hebert finished in a tie for 11th place in the individual standings to earn the third best finish of his career and the fourth top 15 finish of his career. He finished in a career best tied for seventh at the spring 2010 Gator Invitational.
"Mike was in control of himself and the golf ball all day today," said Jones. "A bogey free 64 shows what he is capable of. His composure and tempo did not change at all throughout the day and that is a testament to how much he has improved as a golfer." Florida State most recently finished in 13th place in the NCAA Championship finals in 2007. The Seminoles finished in a program best fourth place in the 1957 national finals and most recently finished in seventh place in the national finals in both 1987 and 1995. The trip to the national finals marks the third for Jones as a head coach; he guided Georgia State to a fifth place finish in the 2005 and the Seminoles to a 13th place finish in 2007.
Jones, the 2008 ACC Coach of the Year, has guided the Seminoles to five consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances and into the national rankings in five of the last six seasons. The Seminoles are ranked No. 15 in the most recent national poll by GolfStat and have been ranked as high as No. 3 this year.
2010 NCAA Central Regional/May 20-22, 2010/Final Team Results Warren Golf Course/South Bend, Ind./Par 70 1. Stanford 830 T6. Iowa 848 2. Florida State 834 9. Indiana 850 3. Florida 838 10. Virginia Tech 855 4. Duke 839 11. NC State 859 5. LSU 847 12. Detroit Mercy 871 T6. Northwestern 848 13. Murray State 875 T6. Michigan 848 14. St. Francis (Pa.) 910
Name Place Rnd1 Rnd2 Rnd3 Total ========================= ===== ==== ==== ==== ===== Drew Kittleson 1 69 67 68 204 Wesley Graham 2t 67 68 70 205 Michael Hebert 11t 72 73 64 209 Brooks Koepka 39t 75 68 73 216 Seath Lauer 63t 77 73 77 227
Noles Advance To Match Play.
Seminoles finish second in stroke play portion of national championship.
OOLTEWAH, TN - The Florida State men's golf team finished in second place in stroke play and will face Texas Tech in the first round of match play as the first phase of the NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championship concluded at The Honors Course. The Seminoles advanced to match play as one of the top eight finishing teams in stroke play and will begin three potential rounds of match play Friday.
The first seven teams that will participate in match play were determined through stroke play with a three way tie for eighth place bringing on a playoff Friday morning. Oklahoma State, the stroke play champion will face the winner of the playoff between Stanford, Arizona State and San Diego. No. 2 Florida State will face No. 7 Texas Tech, No. 3 Georgia Tech will face No. 6 Augusta State and No. 4 Washington will face Oregon. In a quarterfinal, semifinal, final match play tournament, the field will be whittled down from eight to four to two to a national champion on Sunday.
Illinois junior Scott Langley won medalist honors as he finished with a 10 under par total of 206. he defeated Alex Ching of San Diego by two strokes.
Friday's playoff between the three teams in scheduled to begin at 8:00 a.m. on Friday.
The Seminoles will tee off against the Red Raiders at 10:30 on Friday morning. A victory would send them to a match against the winner of Friday's Georgia Tech vs. Augusta State match. The second round match is scheduled to be played on Saturday.
"I think I am more proud of our guys and the way they fought back today that I was after they played so well over the first two days," said head coach Trey Jones. "Our guys really battled and finished second against the best teams in the country. It's a testament to our guys and shows how far our program has come in the last six years to have played this well over the first 54 holes.
Florida State entered the third and final round of stroke play in sole possession of first place but fell behind Oklahoma State mid way through the third round. The Seminoles never fell out of the top eight and righted their ship over the last six holes of the round to earn a second place finish. The Seminoles finished four strokes behind Oklahoma State and four strokes ahead of Georgia Tech.
Junior Drew Kittleson (Scottsdale, Az.) led the Seminoles in the final round and finished in a tie for sixth place in the individual standings. His national finish of tied for sixth place is the best by a Seminole since All-American Nolan Henke finished in a tie for second in the individual standings at the NCAA Championship finals.
Kittleson carded a 71 in the third round to finish with a 211 total of the tournament. He finished with all three of his scores below par at 70-70-71 - he was the only Seminole to finish under par in the third round (-1) and under par for the tournament. Kittleson has now carded six consecutive and seven of his last eight rounds under par.
"I shot one under for the round but the team is going to match play and that is the most important thing," said Kittleson following the third round which ended just as darkness settled in. "I had a chance to win which was fun but came up a little short. It was definitely a good week."
Sophomore Brooks Koepka and freshman Michael Hebert finished in a tied for 18th place in the individual standings with scores of 214. Koepka (Wellington, Fla.) finished stroke play with an even par score of 72 while Hebert (Orlando, Fla.) closed stroke round play with a one over par score of 73.
Senior Seath Lauer (Huntington, Ind.) finished in a tied for 58th place while sophomore Wesley Graham (Port Orange, Fla.) finished in a tie for 90th place.
"Now we will regroup and get ready for match play," said Jones. "It has been a great week so far and tomorrow will be a lot of fun."
The Seminoles will face a Texas Tech team that made the biggest jump of the final day to get into the top eight of the final team standings. The Red Raiders moved from a tied for 19th place after two rounds into seventh place in the final standings with the best team score of the day - an eight under par 280.
Florida State and Texas Tech most recently met in match play at the 2009 Callaway Match Play Championships in a match won by the Seminoles, 3-1-1. Winning for the Seminoles in that match was Koepka while Lauer halved his match in the Florida State victory.
"Hopefully we can continue to play well and make a lot of birdies," said Kittleson. "If everyone plays their own game, then hopefully we can beat the other team."
The Seminoles have played in two match play championships events in the last two years and have a record of 4-2-1.
NCAA Championship Finals/Par 72/Third Round Team Results The Honors Course/Ooltewah, Tenn./June 1-6, 2010 1. 4 Oklahoma State 850 T16. 21 Oregon State 875 2. 11 Florida State 854 T16. 14 Clemson 875 3. 15 Georgia Tech 858 T16. 6 UCLA 875 4. 5 Washington 860 19. 20 Illinois 876 5. 1 Oregon 861 20. 42 Kent State 877 6. 9 Augusta State 863 T21. 12 UNLV 879 7. 10 Texas Tech 867 T21 7 Texas 879 T8. 2 Stanford 868 23. 29 California 880 T8. 16 Arizona State 868 24. 28 LSU 883 T8. 25 San Diego 868 T25. 47 Baylor 884 T11. 13 Florida 869 T25. 26 Tennessee 884 T11. 19 Virginia 869 27. 23 Duke 889 13. 3 Texas A&M 871 28. 24 TCU 889 14. 22 North Florida 872 29. Penn State 898 15. 8 Southern California 874 30. Georgia Southern 905
Name Place Rnd1 Rnd2 Rnd3 Total ========================= ===== ==== ==== ==== ===== Drew Kittleson 6t 70 70 71 211 Brooks Koepka 18t 71 71 72 214 Michael Hebert 18t 73 68 73 214 Seath Lauer 58t 69 70 80 219 Wesley Graham 90t 76 71 76 223
Noles Golf To Final Fore.
Seminoles defeat Texas Tech in NCAA CHampionship quarterfinals.
OOLTEWAH, TN - The Florida State men's golf team advanced to the national semifinals with a 4-1 victory over Texas Tech in the quarterfinal round of match play in the NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championship on The Honors Course. The Seminoles will meet Augusta State at 9:45 on Saturday for the right to play for the national championship. The winner of Saturday's match between Florida State and Augusta State will meet the winner of the Oklahoma State vs. Oregon match that will begin at 9:00 on Saturday.
Florida State won four of the five matches contended on Friday with senior Seath Lauer, junior Drew Kittleson, sophomore Brooks Koepka and freshman Michael Hebert all gaining wins. With victories by Hebert and Lauer in the first and third matches, Florida State clinched the victory by Koepka as he earned a victory in the fourth match of the afternoon. Kittleson won his match but the outcome had already been decided.
The Seminoles trailed 1-0 after a win by Texas Tech's Tyler Weworski over Wesley Graham but won the final four matches of the day to claim the team win.
"It was a really good round for our team today," said head coach Trey Jones. "Some of the best golf I saw our guys play was on the last seven holes yesterday. It's easy to play when you have it rolling. They found a way yesterday afternoon and got behind today and played really well."
Graham (Orlando, Fla.) played well in the first match to be completed but was defeated by Weworski, 3 and 2. Despite finishing only four holes over par, Graham was never able to seize the momentum from Weworski who took the lead on the second hole and never relinquished control. Weworski won the event with a three hole lead with two holes to play.
Hebert, who passed his test in his first match play experience as a Seminole in the national quarterfinals, took control of his match on the sixth hole and never let his opponent Finley Ewing IV of Texas Tech back in the match. He won or halved eight of final 12 holes, did not trail after the sixth hole and won the mach 2 and 1. Hebert (Orlando, Fla.) was up by two holes with one to play to earn the team point for the Seminoles with one hole to play.
"It was a lot of fun, really nerve racking, a lot more nerve racking than stroke play." said Hebert. "It was a lot of fun and I enjoyed it. I calmed down once I got up. When I got up by three I was pretty calm. Then he made a few birdies and I hit one in the water and it got down with one up with two to go and I got nervous again. But I hit a great shot on 17 to win the match. I think getting this under my belt was good for me and I am looking forward to tomorrow."
Lauer (Huntington, Ind.) won one of the most important matches of the day for the Seminoles as he recovered from being as many as two holes down to win the match after making the turn onto the 10th hole. After trailing for each of the first eight holes, then tying the match on hole No. 9, Lauer allowed four years of high level golf to take over for him. Lauer gained his first lead of the afternoon on hole No. 10 and clinched the victory with a stellar 25 foot putt on hole No. 18 to win the match 2 up. He entered the final hole of match only one hole up and clinched the win with what he considered to be "the most important putt I have made in my career as a Seminole."
"It has been frustrating the last couple of days putting," said Lauer. "The ball got about halfway to the hole (on his final shot) and I thought, 'This one has got to go in.' It was a good feeling to see one go in that was over five feet." Nothing went well during the first two rounds. I was hitting the ball great, but missing everything [putts]. It was great to see one finally go in."
"Seath is our senior captain and he come out today and get two down right out of the gate," said Jones. "It didn't phase him one bit. Once he got the lead he didn't give it back. He a guy that I know can handle that situation."
Koepka, the co-ACC player of the Year, clinched the monumental victory with a
2 up victory over Chris Ward. He won the match as he out dueled Ward on the final hole to win by two. Koepka, too, seized control of his match at the turn. With the match all square, he earned a par
on the par four hole No. 9 to take a one hole lead. He held the lead for the final 10 holes and won the match. "It's just going to matter how we handle the situations that are
given to us tomorrow," said Jones. "You can't play defense in golf; you can only play your best." Having already clinched the ninth top 10 finish in school history, the Seminoles will now work to
earn the first top two finish in school history. The Seminoles best national finish prior to this season was fourth in 1957. Florida State vs. Texas Tech Noles Fall In National Semifinals. Men's golf team falls to Augusta State in NCAA Golf Championship. OOLYTEWAH, TN - The Florida State men's golf team
fell to Augusta State, 4-1, in the semifinals of the NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championship at The Honors Course thus ending the Seminoles' run at the first national championship in the sport of
men's golf in school history. Despite the loss the Seminoles finished in a tie for third place at the national championship finals to earn the best finish in the history of the program. "My hat is
off to Augusta State's golf team," said head coach Trey Jones following the final match of the best season the history of the program. "I'm proud of the effort our guys gave today; they never quit. We
are all sad right now and once this wears off we will realize what a great year we had. This has been a team - a group of guys that are very special. I am just fortunate to be a part of it."
Similar to the ebb of flow on Friday's match where the Seminoles played very well over their back nine and defeated Texas Tech, they nearly used that same back nine magic to rally against the Jaguars.
After trailing three of the five matches from early on, the Seminoles were winning one match and even in two others through 11 holes to put themselves back into contention for the win. The Jaguars,
though, seized back the momentum and advanced to Sunday's championship match against Oklahoma State. Senior Seath Lauer, who played in his final match as a Seminole, won the only match of the day
for Florida State as he defeated Mitch Krywulcz, 4 and 3. After a see-saw match that saw both players hold the lead during the first seven holes, Lauer took the lead on hole No. 8 and quickly put the
match into the win column for the Seminoles. He won five of the next eight holes to put himself up by four holes with only three to play. During his eight hole run to the victory, Lauer made two
birdies and earned six pars. Lauer (Huntington, Ind.) defeated both of his opponents in the Seminoles' two rounds of match plays against Texas Tech and Augusta State. "We were playing really
well," said Lauer. "Unfortunately we didn't get to pull it off today. Today, I was back and forth. Some good golf, some not so great golf. All in all, it was a good week." Said Jones on Lauer's
performance: "Once again, that is our senior captain. He did not want this to be his final round and he did his part." In the most dramatic finish of the afternoon, Florida State's Drew Kittleson
was defeated by Augusta State's Henrick Norlander, 3 and 1. Kittleson led the match for the first six holes before Norlander grabbed the lead for good on hole No. 12. Not one to back off, Kittleson
(Scottsdale, Az.) stormed back to get within two shots with two holes to play before Norlander made an 80-yard par shot on a lob wedge on the 17 hole to clinch the match for himself and his team. The
80-yard shot clinched the win for the Jaguars. Both Kittleson and Norlander carded eagles on the par three hole No. 2. Sophomores Brooks Kopeka (Wellington, Fla.) and Wesley Graham (Port Orange,
Fla.) played matches that went right down to the wire. Both players pulled to within one hole on their opponent - both on hole No. 17 with one hole remaining - before losing close matches at the
end. Graham never trailed by more than two holes and squared the match on both holes 12 and 13. His opponent, Taylor Floyd, won holes No. 14 and 15 to take a two shot lead before Graham won hole
No. 17 to close the match to a one hole difference. Floyd, though, birdied hole No. 18 while Graham earned a par to put the match in Augusta State's column. Koepka, too, never tailed by more than
two shots, and also had the opportunity to tie the match on his final two holes. He birdied the par four 17th while Patrick Reed of Augusta State parred the hole to move to within one hole and a tie.
Reed played the hole safely and earned a split of the 18th hole and the match victory for the Jaguars. Freshman Michael Hebert, who played well in his first career NCAA Championship tournament this
week, fell 4 and 3 to Carter Newman of Augusta State. With the match all square through three, Newman won four of the next seven holes to take control and earn the victory. The NCAA Men's Golf
Championship is down to two teams as top seed Oklahoma State will battle No. 7 seed Augusta State for the title Sunday morning at 9:30. The Cowboys will be looking for its 11th title, while the
Jaguars are hunting their first. (2) Florida State 1 vs. (6) Augusta State 4
No. 5 - Michael Hebert (FSU)
def. Finley Ewing IV (TT), 2 and 1
No. 4 - Tyler Weworski (TT) def. Wesley Graham (FSU), 3 and 2
No. 3 - Seath Lauer (FSU) def. Matt Smith (TT), 2 up
No. 2 - Brooks Koepka (FSU) def. Chris
Ward (TT), 2 up
No. 1 - Drew Kittleson (FSU) def. Nils Floren (TT), 2 and 1
Augusta State 4, Florida State 1
06/05/2010, NCAA Match Play, Final Four, Ooltewah, Tenn.
From the FSU Website, seminoles.com.
No. 5 - Carter Newman (ASU) def. Michael Hebert (FSU), 4 and 3
No. 4 - Taylor Floyd (ASU) def. Wesley
Graham, 2 up
No. 3 - Seath Lauer (FSU) def. Mitch Krywulcz (ASU), 4 and 3
No. 2 - Patrick Reed (ASU) def. Brooks Koepka (FSU), 1 up
No. 1 - Henrik Norlander (ASU) def. Drew Kittleson
(FSU), 3 and 1