SEA ISLAND, Ga. — Fresh off of its first tournament victory of the season, the 30th-ranked LSU men’s golf team is set to begin play Friday in the 2005 Southeastern Conference Men’s Golf Championship at Sea Island Golf Club.
The Tigers won the fifth-annual LSU Spring Invitational at the University Club two weeks ago with a three-round total of 1-over par 865, and LSU head coach Greg Jones believes that his team is playing its best golf of the season and enters the SEC Championships with some momentum.
“All the way through the lineup everybody is playing well,” Jones said. “It’s the right time to be playing well, and all of our experience with playing tough golf courses in windy conditions should benefit us this weekend. To a player, everybody is playing their best golf at this time.”
The tournament returns to the Seaside Course for the fifth consecutive year, and the course will play to a par 70 and 6,945 for the championship.
Eight teams enter the tournament ranked in the top 30 of the latest Golfstat poll, led by third-ranked and defending SEC champion Georgia. The other teams in the top 30 are No. 7 Florida, No. 8 Auburn, No. 17 Kentucky, No. 18 South Carolina, No. 20 Tennessee, No. 22 Alabama and No. 30 LSU.
“It’s a very strong conference this year, but if we play well we can play with anybody in this tournament,” Jones said. “We can’t control what other teams shoot, but if we go out there and play like I know we’re capable we can play with any team here.”
Jones will play with a lineup of seniors Jeff Riemann and Brandon Aydlett, sophomore Chris Wells, and freshmen Beck Troutman and Brent Struthers. Riemann and Aydlett are making their second appearance in the SEC Championships, while Wells, Troutman and Struthers are making their first.
“I expect these guys to go out there and play their game,” Jones said. “Chris has had a nice year, and I expect him to keep doing the things he’s done. Beck, even though he’s a freshman, has been getting better every week. I just expect them to go out there and play their game and not focus on what others are doing.”
Troutman claimed medalist honors at the Spring Invitational by firing a three-round score of 5-under 211 for the first tournament victory of his young career. He is competing in his ninth tournament of the season and has a 73.62 stroke average in 24 rounds.
Wells has competed in all 10 tournaments for the Tigers this season and leads the team with a 72.50 stroke average in 30 rounds, including 13 rounds of par or better. His six top-10 finishes also leads the team and ranks second in the SEC behind Jordan Dempsey of Ole Miss.
Riemann is making his ninth tournament appearance of the season, while Aydlett and Struthers are making their fifth. Riemann finished in a tie for 29th in the SEC Championships a year ago, while Aydlett finished 56th. Struthers earned his best finish of the season in the Spring Invitational with a tie for 29th.
LSU finished eighth in the SEC Championships last season with a three-round total of 35-over 874. The Tigers’ best finish of the Greg Jones era is a tie for fourth in 2002.
LSU has 15 SEC titles in its history, which is second behind Georgia’s 23. The Tigers last won the title in 1987 on the strength of a first-place finish by current PGA Tour star David Toms.
The tournament begins at 8 a.m. Friday as Georgia looks to defend its title from a year ago. The Bulldogs finished one stroke ahead of 2003 champion Florida with a 3-over 843, and Brendon Todd of Georgia claimed medalist honors with a 3-under 207.
The Tigers are paired with Auburn and Kentucky for the first round and will tee off beginning at 10:30 a.m.