Kentucky Tees Off at NCAA Regional on Monday
2017-18 Season Stats
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The stage is set and the challenge of postseason play starts now. A pursuit of an NCAA Championship for the Kentucky men’s golf team begins at the NCAA Bryan Regional on Monday. UK is vying for one of five spots from the Bryan Regional to advance to the NCAA Championship site in Stillwater, Oklahoma, later this month.
What awaits the Wildcats is a loaded field and a three-day, 54-hole event at The Traditions Club outside of College Station, Texas. The teams will play three rounds to determine the five schools who will advance to the NCAA Championship’s field of 30.
Kentucky is ready. After enjoying one of the most prolific regular seasons of head coach Brian Craig’s tenure, the Cats are seeded fourth and will start a mix of veterans and stars in the making to comprise their lineup.
Players will tee off from both the No. 1 and No. 10 tees beginning at 8:30 a.m. ET on Monday, with UK slated to open play off the No. 10 at 9 a.m. ET.
Kentucky enters this week with a No. 23 national ranking after capturing four regular-season tournament victories. The 13-team field consists of nine teams ranked inside of the top 50 of the latest GolfStat rankings, led by the host Aggies who sit at No. 2.
The field is also sprinkled with six of 13 teams reigning from the Southeastern Conference. The SEC landed all 14 men’s golf teams into the NCAA Tournament field. In addition to UK and Texas A&M, the SEC will be represented in Bryan, Texas, by No. 34 Ole Miss, No. 38 South Carolina, No. 50 Georgia and No. 59 Mississippi State.
Big 12 member and 11th-ranked Baylor and No. 14 Clemson out of the Atlantic Coast Conference round out the top-25 teams in the Bryan field.
Coach Craig’s Takeaway
“The NCAA Regional is the most fun tournament of the year. I love it. We are blessed to be heading to (the) Traditions (Club) at Texas A&M. The golf is terrific and will be a good, fair test for the field. I have said it all year and I will say it again – I love this team. Let’s go compete and embrace the challenge.”
Lineup Profiles
Lukas Euler: Euler has enjoyed the most productive season of his three-year career. He has totaled a career-low 71.30 stroke average, which also ranks as the best on the team. That includes a team-high eight top-20 finishes in 10 events. The Dieburg, Germany, native has also tallied a team-best 21 par-or-better rounds. He opened his junior campaign by scoring a tie for third to help lead UK to a win at the Wolf Run Intercollegiate. He then carded a tie for second at the Steelwood Intercollegiate to cap off the Fall, narrowly missing out on his first career win. His spring season was highlighted by a runner-up finish at the Hootie at Bulls Bay Intercollegiate where he scored a career-low 205 at 11-under for the week. He was UK’s top finisher at the SEC Championship with a tie for 16th. He will make his third start at the NCAA Regional this week with his best finish coming in the form of sixth during his freshman season.
Cooper Musselman: Musselman is set to appear in the 43rd event of his career and his third NCAA Regional. Musselman has notched a 71.80 stroke average on the season with six top-20 finishes and four top-10 finishes which include his first collegiate victory. Musselman opened the season with three-consecutive top-10 finishes, including a win at the Crooked Stick Intercollegiate. He shot a 6-under-par score to lead Kentucky to its third straight tournament win to begin the year. Musselman tied for ninth at the Bearcat Invitational and broke his own records with a low round (67) and a low score (207). The Louisville, Kentucky, native has fired 18 par-or-better rounds on the year, including eight of those coming in the final round of a tournament. He matched Euler’s performance with a tie for 16th at the SEC Championship. A year ago he touted a tie for 12th in his second appearance in the NCAA Regional.
Chip McDaniel: McDaniel will make his 44th career start and the fourth of his career at the NCAA Regional after appearing as an individual his freshman season. McDaniel has finished in the top 10 in each of his last two starts at the NCAA Regional. He enters the week with a 72.27 stroke average, which includes 15 par-or-better rounds. McDaniel was simply sensational during his last regular-season event where he earned a runner-up, record-breaking finish at the Gary Koch Invitational. McDaniel fired a career-low-tying 201 (-15) for the week with rounds of 66-69-66 to finish just one shot off the lead. McDaniel earned his second individual win this season when he took home top honors at the Bearcat Invitational to help guide UK to its second straight tournament title in as many tries to begin the season. The Manchester, Kentucky, native also shot a 201 at that tournament, marking the second-lowest 54-hole tournament score under Craig.
Max Mehles: Mehles has charged into the lineup with magnificent performances down the stretch for the Wildcats this spring in his redshirt freshman campaign. Mehles has garnered three top-10 finishes in his last five events played; including a tie for third with his best-ever score at the Gary Koch Invitational. Mehles played at 7-under par behind scores of 70-71-68 as Kentucky secured its fourth win of the season. The Pulheim, Germany, native has carded 11 par-or-better rounds with seven coming in an eight-round stretch to conclude regular-season action. Mehles finished in a tie for sixth at the Hootie at Bulls Bay Intercollegiate and also had a tie for seventh as an individual at the General Hackler Championship. In his first start at the SEC Championship, Mehles claimed a tie for 26th which included a round of 1-under par during the second round. He will make his first-ever appearance in the NCAA Regional this week.
Fred Allen Meyer: Meyer will make the second start of his career at the NCAA Regional and the 21st of his career overall. The Nicholasville, Kentucky, native enjoyed one of his best performances of the season at the Gary Koch Invitational with a career-best finish of a tie for sixth. He fired rounds of 71-69-70 for a 210 total score. He narrowly missed matching his career-best score of 208 which he set earlier this season at the Bearcat Invitational when he tied for 11th. He has six top-20 finishes in his career and is shooting at a career-low clip of 73.15 this season over 27 rounds of play.
Matt Liston: Liston is the sixth member of UK’s lineup in the newly revamped NCAA Regional lineups that allow you to have an alternate player. Liston fired a 74.29 stroke average over 21 rounds and five starts this season. His best finish came as a member of the starting lineup at the Wolf Run Intercollegiate where his top-five finish helped pave the way to a win for the Wildcats. Liston enjoyed rounds of 74-73-71 in the event. He has fired a career-low score (68) and a career-low tournament score (215) during his sophomore campaign this season. Liston’s last start came at the Gary Koch Invitational where he fired a 2-over par score and finished in a tie for 29th overall.
The Tournament Setup
Teams: No. 2 Texas A&M, No. 11 Baylor, No. 14 Clemson, No. 23 Kentucky, UCLA, Ole Miss, South Carolina, San Francisco, Georgia, Mississippi State, UNC Wilmington, Northern Colorado, Bradley
Course Details: The course was constructed in 2004 with Jack Nicklaus and Jack Nicklaus Jr., serving as the architects. It’s played on Bermuda grass year round nestled among majestic native hardwoods, rolling hillsides and the natural banks of the Turkey Creek.
Format: Three-day, 54-hole event stroke play. Count top four scores each day.
Live Look: Live stats are available via golfstat.com.
Forecast: Monday (Partly cloudy, high of 90, 10% chance of rain, SSE 9 mph); Tuesday (Partly cloudy, high of 92, 10% chance of rain, SSW 9 mph); Wednesday (Partly cloudy, high of 92, 20% chance of rain, SSW 11 mph)
History at NCAA Regionals
Best Finish: First (2004)
All-Time Finishes under Brian Craig: 2017 (7th), 2016 (4th), 2014 (4th), 2013 (10th), 2009 (9th), 2008 (17th), 2006 (10th), 2005 (T4th), 2004 (1st), 2003 (6th)
Returning Players History: Lukas Euler (T6th at Tuscaloosa in 2016; T19th at Baton Rouge in 2017), Chip McDaniel (T4th at Tuscaloosa in 2016; T7th at Baton Rouge in 2017), Fred Allen Meyer (T69th at Baton Rouge in 2017), Cooper Musselman (T12th at Baton Rouge in 2017; T56th at Tuscaloosa in 2016)
Agate
Kentucky
Lukas Euler
Cooper Musselman
Chip McDaniel
Max Mehles
Fred Allen Meyer
Matt Liston
For the latest on the Kentucky men’s golf team, follow @UKMensGolf on Twitter and on the web at UKathletics.com.
