While most students were attending class Monday and Tuesday, the LSU men’s golf team competed against several of the top teams in the country at the Mercedes-Benz Collegiate Championship at the Sawgrass Country Club in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.
“It was basically a mini NCAA [championship],” said LSU head coach Greg Jones.
The Tigers began with a rough start during the first two rounds, finishing 19 over par and in 14th place overall. But they recovered on Tuesday by shooting four over par to tie Georgia for 12th place.
“I was really pleased that our team was able to put the first day behind them and score in the top three or four for the day on Tuesday,” Jones said.
Senior golfer John Humphries led the Tigers placing 7th overall, shooting two under par. It was his second straight top ten finish, but this performance was especially impressive considering the talent of the opposition, which included the top team in the country, Clemson.
“I definitely think I gained a lot of confidence,” Humphries said. “I really felt like I could of beat all of them.”
Jones believes Humphries understood his potential during this tournament.
“John realized how good he was this tournament,” Jones said. “It was basically a semi-pro tournament.”
This year’s team has much youth to work with. They brought two freshman and two sophomores to the tournament. Jones and Humphries agreed that the youthfulness of the team contributed to their rough start.
“I think they could of been a little over anxious and had a tough time getting their heads in the game,” Humphries said.
In the past, Jones tried to improve the program through junior college players, but he said he has decided to no longer sign JUCO players in the interest of creating a dominant program. Instead, he has begun to recruit more incoming freshman who he can develop through their time at LSU.
“This was the year I decided to stop repairing and begin to grow the team,” Jones said.
Jones expects to have a program in the coming years that is as dominant as those they competed against in the Mercedes-Benz Collegiate Championship.
“We’ll catch those programs,” Jones said. “I’m not worried about that.”