April 19, 2015
ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – Freshman Tyler `Chip’ McDaniel earned a top 15 finish in his first-ever Southeastern Conference Championship to lead the Kentucky men’s golf team to an 11th place overall finish at the 2015 tournament in St. Simons Island, Ga.
McDaniel concluded the tournament at 2-under par and he tied for 11th on the individual leaderboard. The Manchester, Ky., native fired a 1-over par, 71, on the final day of play and was the only player to finish the tournament under par. His round featured just one bogey on the afternoon and all 17 other holes at even par.
“This was a great learning experience for our young team,” UK head coach Brian Craig said. “There is much to work on to play at the level we all desire, but the great upside of this group is tremendous. We need to take a few days off, play one more match on Wednesday and then sit around and see if we make the postseason, as we are squarely on the bubble.”
UK’s SEC Championship team consisted of four first-time performers headlined by McDaniel. Fellow freshman Cooper Musselman tied for 27th overall following a 4-over par, 74, during the final round. Musselman was 2-over par for the tournament and finished second on the team.
Freshman Cristian DiMarco posted his best-ever collegiate round at 3-over par, 73, to cap his first SEC Championship event. DiMarco posted two birdies on the back nine to highlight the day. Sophomore Stephen Stallings, also a first-time participant at the SEC Championship, notched a tournament-best 73 during the final round of play.
Junior David Snyder, the only player with Championship experience, finished in a tie for 31st overall after logging a 1-over par, 71, on Sunday. He finished the tournament at 3-over par.
Kentucky finished in 11th overall as a unit, just one stroke back of No. 38 Texas A&M. No. 7 LSU rallied on the final day of play to earn a three-stroke win over No. 5 Vanderbilt and sixth-ranked South Carolina. No. 15 Auburn and No. 25 Alabama finished in a tie for fourth to round out the top five teams.
The 2015 NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championships selections will be announced live via the Golf Channel Monday, May 4 during Morning Drive. Additionally, the show will be streamed live on the Golf Channel website and posted afterwards on the NCAA website at www.ncaa.com.
For more information on the University of Kentucky men’s golf team please visit the team’s official website and follow us on Twitter @UKmensgolf.
SEC Championship
April 17-19
St. Simon Island, Ga., Sea Island: Seaside Course
Par 70, 6,898 yards
11 – Kentucky (284, 284, 288-856, +16)
T11 – Tyler `Chip’ McDaniel (67, 70, 71-208, -2)
T27 – Cooper Musselman (69, 69, 74-212, +2)
T31 – David Snyder (70,72,71-213, +3)
T66 – Cristian DiMarco (78, 74, 73-225, +15)
T66 – Stephen Stallings (79,73,73-225, +15)
