Razorback Golf Team Eyes NCAA National Title

All Access, Golf | May 23, 2014 by Sporting Life Arkansas | 0 Comments

RAZORBACK GOLF INFO

2013-14 Record (Events): 107-48-3 (12)

National Ranking: No. 12 Golfstat, No. 19 Golfweek, No. 24 Golf World/NIKE

Team Titles: 2 (Crooked Stick Intercollegiate & Gator Invite)

Top 5s: 6

Top 10s: 11

Head Coach: Brad McMakin (Oklahoma ‘91)

Record at Arkansas: 859-340-18 (8th Year)

NCAA Championship App.: 4 (2009, 11, 13, 14)

NCAA Regional App.: 7 (2008, 09, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)

TOURNAMENT INFO.

Event: NCAA Championships

Date: Friday, May 23 – Wednesday, May 28

City: Hutchinson, Kan.

Course: Prairie Dunes Country Club

Par & Yardage: Par 70 • 6,948 Yards

Live Scoring: www.GOLFSTAT.com

Twitter: @RazorbackMGOLF

Hashtags: #NeverYield | #WPS

NCAA Championship App. Since 2009: 4

Top Finish (Year): 2nd (2009)

AT A GLANCE

Coming off a second place finish at the Columbia Regional, No. 12 Arkansas will make its fourth appearance at the NCAA Championships in the last six years when play begins on Friday. The Razorback golf team shot 28-under par over the 54-hole NCAA Columbia Regional, highlighted by an 18-under 270 in the second which was the second-lowest score by any team from the six regionals. The second place showing at an NCAA Regional was the second in a row for Arkansas, who finished one stroke back of advancing to match play at last year’s NCAA Championship en route to finishing 10th.

STARTING 5 QUICK 5 HITS

Sebastian Cappelen (Sr.)

• Will make third career NCAA Championships appearance.

• Posted 19th career top 10 at the Columbia Regional.

• Counting score in 35 of 36 rounds, including 17 under-par.

• Program’s all-time scoring leader at 71.9.

• Ranked No. 19 by both Golfstat & Golfweek.

Taylor Moore (So.)

• Will make second NCAA Championships appearance.

• Turned in 32 counting scores with 16 par or lower rounds.

• Has produced a 71.4 stroke average in the spring (21 RDs).

• Tied for the team lead with five top 10s.

• Shot par or lower in each of the last four rounds.

Kolton Crawford (R-So.)

• Will make NCAA Championships debut.

• Team’s top finisher at the Columbia Regional in 5th place.

• Shot a career-low 8-under 208 at the Columbia Regional.

• Has double-digit birdies in five of the last six tournaments.

• Turned in a counting score in 31 of 36 rounds.

Nicolas Echavarria (So.)

• Team’s top finisher (13th) at the 2013 NCAA Championships.

• Tied for 6th at the NCAA Columbia Regional at 7-under 209.

• Even-par or lower in 7 of 12 career postseason rounds.

• Counting score in a career-long 10 straight rounds.

• Set a program SEC 36-hole record with rounds of 66 & 68.

Blake Biddle (Sr.)

• Will make NCAA Championships and spring debut.

• Advanced to U.S. Open sectional qualifier on May 14.

• Played in four tournaments in the fall.

• Transferred to Arkansas from UNLV last summer.

• Owns two career top 10s at NCAA Regionals (at UNLV).

ALL-CENTRAL REGION HONORS

The one-two punch of senior SEBASTIAN CAPPELEN and sophomore TAYLOR MOORE earned PING All-Central Region honors on Thursday. The All-Region honor is the fourth of Cappelen’s storied career, while Moore adds the All-Region accolade to his 2013 Co-SEC Freshman of the Year award. Either Cappelen or Moore has been Arkansas’ low man in 10 of 12 tournaments this year, while both have scoring averages of 71.4 in the spring. Out of the team’s 21 rounds in the spring, one of the two has finished even-par or lower in 13 of 21 rounds and a combined total of 20.

COLUMBIA REGIONAL RECAP

Arkansas put up some staggering statistics at last weekend’s NCAA Columbia Regional, highlighted by Friday’s second round 18-under par 270.

• Broke the previous program NCAA Regional single-round record twice with an 18-under par 270 in
the second round and a final round 11-under 277.

• The 18-under 270 is the lowest round by an SEC program this year.

• Second straight year and third time in the last six years Arkansas has finished second at a regional.

• Four different players shot 67 over the final two rounds while the program’s previous 20 NCAA
Regional appearances yielded just six players who shot 67 or lower.

• First time Arkansas has had multiple rounds in the 60s at an NCAA Regional.

• All four players shot under-par in the same round (2nd) for the second time this year.

• 10 of 12 counting scores were even-par or lower.

• Five players accounted for 55 birdies and one eagle.

• Arkansas had at least one birdie on 15 of 18 holes in the second round and all but one hole in the
tournament.

• Never counted a double-bogey over the three rounds.

• Counted 39 birdies and an eagle with just 12 total bogeys over the final two rounds.

• Redshirt KOLTON CRAWFORD equaled the program NCAA Regional 54-hole record with a 72-69
67/208 scorecard.

SPRING CLEANING

Led by the quartet of senior SEBASTIAN CAPPELEN, sophomore TAYLOR MOORE, redshirt sophomore KOLTON CRAWFORD and sophomore NICOLAS ECHAVARRIA, Arkansas has drastically improved its play in the spring season. As team, the Razorbacks turned in a scoring average of 294.2 in the fall, but have bounced back with an average of 286.7 over seven events in the spring. Of the team’s 14 under-par rounds on the year, nine have come in the spring.

Player	Fall Avg.	Spring Avg.	Improvement
Kolton Crawford	75.1	72.6	-2.6
Nicolas Echavarria	75.6	73.1	-2.5
Taylor Moore	73.8	71.4	-2.4
Sebastian Cappelen	71.4	71.4	0.0

MR. POSTSEASON

A year ago following the 2013 SEC Championship, head coach BRAD MCMAKIN inserted then-freshman NICOLAS ECHAVARRIA back into the lineup for NCAA Regionals and the NCAA Championships. Echavarria didn’t disappoint, posting top 15s at both events while earning All-American honorable mention status along the way. Echavarria is at it again this year, so far carding his top four rounds at the SEC Championship and the NCAA Columbia Regional to earn the nickname Mr. Postseason.

• Holds a scoring average of 70.3 over 12 rounds of postseason play – SEC Championship (3), NCAA
Regionals (6) and NCAA Championships (3).

• Finished in the top 15 in all four events, counting for four of his six career top 20s.

• Shot even-par or lower in seven of 12 rounds.

• Has posted a pair of bogey-free rounds.

• Turned in a counting score in 11 of 12 rounds.

• Team low-man in five rounds.

• Shot under-par all four second rounds (67.3)

• Hasn’t made back-to-back bogeys in his last nine postseason rounds or a double bogey in the last
six rounds.

• Has 44 birdies over the four tournaments.

For more information on Arkansas men’s golf, follow @RazorbackMGolf on Twitter.