Razorbacks Battle Loaded Field at Valspar Collegiate
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The Arkansas men’s golf team will play in one of the nation’s premier events starting on Monday, March 21, traveling to Palm City, Florida for the 2016 Valspar Collegiate Invitational.
All 15 teams competing in the event are ranked in the top 50 of the latest Golfstat national rankings, including 10 squads in the top 25 and four in the top 10. The 54-hole tournament features 36 holes Monday, followed by the final round Tuesday at the par 71, 7,114-yard Floridian National Golf Club. Live scoring is available at Golfstat.com or via the Golfstat Live app.
“I’m looking forward to seeing if we can continue to play well and how we stack up against one of the best fields in the country,” said head coach Brad McMakin. “I love the way we’ve been playing and if we can put together three strong rounds we’ll have a chance.”
No. 23 Arkansas is coming off a runner-up finish at the Southern Intercollegiate last week, traveling to Georgia and nearly taking down the second-ranked Bulldogs on their home course. The Razorbacks have finished in the top five in five of their last six tournaments, including a victory at the All-American Intercollegiate.
Senior Taylor Moore will look to continue his consistent play at the top of the lineup after carding seven consecutive rounds under par and shooting 24-under along the way. He has three straight top three finishes, including a victory and runner-up finish.
After his first collegiate victory last week at the Southern Intercollegiate, Nicolas Echavarria has moved up to No. 2 in the lineup. He has shot under par in two of the last three tournaments and has a team-best 67 birdies on the year. Echavarria and Moore are the first Razorback teammates to win tournaments in the same year since Jamie Marshall and David Lingmerth both took home hardware during the 2010 season.
Colton Crawford will tee off in the No. 3 spot after carding a season-best four-under 68 last week for his fourth top-20 finish in the last five tournaments. He has a counting score in 16 of his last 18 rounds.
Charles Kim is making his fifth collegiate start after his first top 20 finish last week. He has eagles in consecutive tournaments, including a round under par in three straight events. Alec Tahy will round out the lineup making his second straight start after back-to-back counting scores last week with a tournament-best 29 pars.
@RazorbackMGolf Lineup (Stroke Average)
1. Taylor Moore, Sr. (71.1)
2. Nicolas Echavarria, Sr. (72.0)
3. Kolton Crawford, R-Sr. (72.8)
4. Charles Kim, Fr. (73.6)
5. Alec Tahy, R-So. (72.5)
Valspar Collegiate Invitational Participants (GolfStat Rankings)
Arkansas (23)
Clemson (11)
Florida (7)
Florida State (5)
Georgia Tech (45)
Houston (36)
Illinois (3)
Kent State (48)
LSU (22)
Memphis (38)
Oklahoma State (13)
South Carolina (18)
Texas (8)
Texas A&M (29)
USF (17)
For more information on Arkansas men’s golf, follow @RazorbackMGolf on Twitter.
