LSU junior golfer Andrew Presley has had his share of obstacles to overcome this season.
Dubbed the leader of the program before the season with former Tiger golfer Sang Yi gone, Presley had the daunting task of leading a young LSU program to the promised land.
That weight took its toll on Presley early this season.
“He was disappointed in the overall performance he had in the first two tournaments,” LSU coach Chuck Winstead said. “I think to some degree, he came in with his own mental hurdles that he had to live up to. When he starts to play and not worry so much about how he should play, he’s going to perform well.”
Coming into the 2012 season, Presley expressed interest in taking Yi’s place atop the program, setting lofty expectations for himself heading into the season-opening Carpet Capital Collegiate Classic.
After shooting a 1-under par 71 in round one and an even-par in the second round, he collapsed on the final day of play.
An 8-over in the final round left Presley finished tied for 40th overall while his younger teammates carried the load.
His second tournament of the season mimicked the first, as he came out firing at the Shoal Creek Intercollegiate with a 2-under 70 in the opening round.
His play began to fall apart in round two, and his 4-over dropped him out of the top-10 overall.
“My confidence wasn’t very high,” Presley said. “I thought that I was close to breaking through because I was hitting it and putting it well. I thought if I could get all three rounds to even out a little bit, then I’d be fine.”
The old Presley made an appearance in the final round, as he shot even-par to finish tied for 16th.
With an encouraging finish in Birmingham, Ala., Presley advanced into the week prior to the squad’s first home tournament at the David Toms Intercollegiate.
And then the illness hit.
“I took some time off because I got the stomach flu, so I didn’t get to hit as many balls as I wanted to,” Presley said. “Obviously, that affected my performance, but everything ended up going pretty well.”
Presley shot a 1-over 73 in both rounds one and two, followed by a 2-over in the final round. He finished No. 1 overall, taking both an individual and team title before taking two weeks off.
“[The first place finish] was definitely something I needed,” Presley said. “It’s always good to go out and get team wins, but an individual win is always a good feeling, so hopefully we can get a couple more.”
At this week’s Isleworth Collegiate Invitational, Presley is leading the charge again for the Tigers. He shot a 1-over 73 in round two, putting him at 2-over 146.
His teammates haven’t been as fortunate.
Although sophomore Curtis Thompson has kept pace with Presley, sophomores Stewart Jolly and Myles Lewis have combined for a 20-over 308.
The Tigers are sitting in 11th place. The tournament will conclude today in Windermere, Fla.
