Alabama Athletics
Alabama Men's Golf Climbs Back Into Contention at NCAA Championships
The University of Alabama men's golf team got to play the waiting game on Saturday afternoon, but in this case it was a good thing.
Playing in the morning, before the desert heat started to approach 100 degrees, the Crimson Tide shot the second round of the NCAA Championships at +2 on the day, +12 overall. At the time that was good enough to be tied for 15th on the team leaderboard with half the field getting under way at the Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Ariz.
But traditionally, the hotter it gets, the more scores rise as the course dries out and plays faster. So the expectation was for Alabama to move up in the standings as the day progressed. The only question was how much?
Comfortable in the figurative clubhouse, it climbed all the way back into a tie for ninth along with tournament host Arizona State, and very much in contention for the team title.
The field will be cut to the top 15 following Sunday's third round. The stroke-play portion of the tournament concludes Monday, with the top eight teams advancing to the match-play quarterfinals.
The difference for Alabama at this point? One stroke, as No. 7 Florida State and No. 16 Virginia were tied for seventh at +11.
Among the Crimson Tide players, Nick Dunlap had the low score of the day at -2, while Canon Claycomb and Jonathan Griz both played the Par-70, 7,289-yard course at even par. Both Thomas Ponder and JP Cave shot +4.
For the tournament, Claycomb, Dunlap and Griz were all at +2, and tied for 24th on the individual leaderboard. Cave was +6, and Ponder +9.
Alabama's round was one of the best of the morning session, although No. 3 Illinois took advantage of an early tee time to shoot -7 and move into the overall lead at -2. It was the only team under par after the second round, with No. 9 Florida second at +1 ahead of No. 2 North Carolina (+6) and No. 11 Georgia Tech (+6), and No. 8 Pepperdine (+8). Top-seeded Vanderbilt shot +8, and was +10 overall, alone in sixth place.
The Crimson Tide will tee off at 9:27 a.m. CT on the 10th hole for Sunday's third round. Alabama will be playing alongside two SEC teams, Texas A&M and Auburn, which are tied for 11th place at +14. The pairings are set by the standings, so the bottom 15 teams have to deal with the heat in the afternoon.
SEE ALSO: Live Updates: Alabama Men's Golf in NCAA Championships (Stroke Play)
