Expectations were high for Ben Stow when crossed the Atlantic Ocean to join the Kentucky men’s golf team. The former No. 2 ranked player according to the European Ranking System and a native of Salisbury, England, Stow was perceived as the missing link in Kentucky’s lineup.Those expectations, though lofty and perhaps unrealistic, are yet to be realized, and the transition from links-style golf in Europe to the American game has taken longer than expected.While Stow hoped to hit the ground running after being able to train with his teammates in the fall season, he believed his game would translate in the U.S. with a little bit of tweaking. What he found was that he was perhaps a bit overzealous in his outlook.”It has been a little difficult because you have to hit the ball so much higher over here and chipping on the different grass you have over here is very different,” said Stow. “Certainly the first three or four tournaments I played I wasn’t ready for the change.”Stow says that the physical conditions of the courses have been the hardest to get used to. The differences in grass have forced him to adjust his game and change his overall approach. In England, there are harder fairways that allow low, line-drive tee shots to roll. In the rough, “meadow” grass allows for easier chipping situations around the green.Each of those factors has played a role in keeping Stow from being the player he’s used to being. The physical game of golf hasn’t been the only hindrance to Stow’s success, however.After spending a great deal of his career with swing coach Gordon Brand, Jr., Stow separated himself from his greatest golf influence. Not only that, but Brand took time off and was completely off the grid for Stow as he experienced his struggles in America. Stow had to take this challenge on by himself.”I was one of the best players in Europe,” said Stow. “But when I came over here, I kept finishing 20th and 15th and stuff, it kind of made me step back and think, ‘What am I doing differently and what do I need to improve on?’ I think that process took me longer than it would have if I was at home because of the fact that I didn’t have instant correspondence with my coach. “Overall, I think it’s been a really good learning experience for me because every golfer goes through a period when they’re struggling and it really shows your character on how you come out on the other side of it.”After experiencing so much success as an individual on the European circuit, Stow was in for a brand-new experience at Kentucky playing golf as a member of a team for the first time in his life. Having always focused on himself, playing for others and not having the sole attention of the coaches has been as big of a challenge as any he’s faced during his time in the States. Add to that the additional amount of pressure he felt to produce and be make the instant impact his coaches and teammates were hoping for, it’s no wonder why things haven’t gone as planned for the English native.”I’ve never played team golf like they do in the States, so that was very different,” said Stow. “The fact that the coach structures everything around the team rather than the individual and everything is set up for the team. Kind of at the end of the day, you look at how the team did and not how you did. It was different.”I did feel a little pressure to help the team along because I played very well in qualifying when I first got here and I’ve got pretty good world rankings, so I expected to play well.”While there were outside expectations, Stow’s confidence and internal expectations were just as high when, in reality, producing under such conditions wouldn’t be easy.”For the first couple of months I was here, I thought I was going to go out and shoot 65 every time I went out, when realistically no one does that in the world,” said Stow. “I’m not going to say it’s been easy because it’s been tough. Who likes playing bad? But I’m glad I’ve been through it and I definitely feel like I’m out the other side of it now because even when I’m playing badly I’m making pretty good scores.”With an NCAA Regional ahead, Stow believes he’s finally ready to be the contributor this team needs him to be. He’s learned from his mistakes and still managed to earn several top-20 finishes along the way. He has altered his game and is starting to understand American-style golf more than at any point during his time in the country.Though he and his teammates have not delivered on the hopes and expectations they set for themselves at the beginning on the spring, there is still one last opportunity to make their mark when they head to Fayetteville, Ark., for regional play beginning Thursday. “We always thought that we’d get it going and start playing better, but we never really did,” said Stow. “I think since postseason, some guys have shot really well. Some of the guys have put some really good rounds together. We’ve spent a lot of time together, which kind of brought the team to easing up a bit. I think the morale of the team is definitely up since the end of the regular season, but I think there’s still room to work on that.”Some strong early results out of the gate tomorrow could go a long way in helping the Wildcats reach their goal of Nationals with a strong finish at Blessings Golf Club in Fayetteville. With morale trending upward and Stow finally feeling ready to be the player he knows he can be, the NCAA Regional serves as the last chance for Stow and Co. to realize their preseason expectations when they tee off Thursday at 9 a.m. ET.”I would just say to them, ‘Guys, we need to do the easy stuff well. We need to do the simple stuff well,’ ” said Stow. “We have got the ability to play great golf on this UK golf team. We’ve got the ability, we just need to go out there and believe in ourselves and do the simple things well. At the end of the week, add them up, and I’m sure we’ll be at the top of the leader board.”