The LSU men’s and women’s golf teams will still be playing once the spring semester ends, as both squads begin preparations for their respective NCAA Regional tournaments in hopes of qualifying for the NCAA Championships.
The Lady Tigers have already figured out their destination for regional play, as they will be hosted by Oklahoma State at the Karsten Creek Golf Club.
The women’s squad will be the No. 5 seed in the regional, playing against the likes of UCLA, Arkansas and Alabama, which round out the top three respectively.
The regional consists of 24 teams, and the top eight are automatically qualified for the NCAA Championship tournament.
LSU women’s coach Karen Bahnsen said her team is prepared for the upcoming regional.
“It is a great golf course,” Bahnsen said in a news release. “We are very excited with earning the bid and the good seed that we did for another year. “Our men’s team has played the course many times so they have some great information to help us know about the course. The main thing is now to work hard and prepare for the next event on our schedule.”
The regional is set to begin May 8 and concludes May 10. The Lady Tigers are slated to tee off round one on the back nine at 8:36 a.m. in a pairing with Arizona and Oklahoma State.
For the men, they await a decision on where they will be placed in the regional round when the announcements are made May 5 at 9 a.m.
The Tigers began their spring semester traveling to La Quinta, Calif. to play at The Prestige at PGA West. The team finished fourth in the field, shooting a 6-under-par.
The Prestige tournament was the first tournament of the spring for the Tigers and kicked off the meat of their schedule, as they competed in four more tournaments in preparation for the SEC Championships.
Junior Stewart Jolly had an All-American type season going on a three-match streak of placing in the top 10 or higher, earning him a spot on the U.S. Palmer Cup squad.
The highlight of the Tigers’ season thus far heading into the regionals was the second place finish they earned at the SEC Championships.
Senior Smylie Kaufman shot an 11-under-par 199 at the tournament, giving him a second place finish individually as part of a 17-under-par third round from the Tigers that saw them jump from fourth to a comfortable seat in the second position.
The 17-under-par round was an LSU record. Their second place finish was the Tigers’ best finish at the SEC Championships in over two decades.
The Tigers are bringing good momentum into regional play and hope to turn that into a positive result to qualify for the NCAA Championships.
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