ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. — Arkansas freshman Thomas Sorensen shot 1-over-par 71 Sunday, but the Arkansas men’s team finished the day where it started, good enough for fifth place in the SEC Men’s Golf Championships at Sea Island Golf Course.
The ninth-ranked Razorbacks shot 9-over 289 to finish the weekend at 15-over 855. No. 7 Alabama won at 12-under 828, making it the second team in 10 years to finish under par at the Seaside Course.
Alabama’s Justin Thomas was the top individual after a 68 to finish at 7-under 203. Alabama’s Bobby Wyatt, who led entering the day, shot 71 to finish second at 205.
Arkansas’ Sorensen finished tied for 15th at 213. Austin Cook and Ethan Tracy tied for 23rd at 215, followed by Sebastian Cappelen tied for 27th at 216 and Kolton Crawford, a freshman, tied for 42nd at 220.
“Our freshmen played great today,” Arkansas Coach Brad McMakin said. “They really stepped up to some challenging conditions and showed that they can play at this level. The winds today were different than they were the other two days and that didn’t faze those guys for an instant. I am disappointed that we were not able to win, but know that we still have some bigger tournaments to play before the end of the season.”
Play was moved up 30 minutes to beat approaching storms, putting Arkansas on the first tee at 6:30 a.m. local time.
Alabama finished six shots ahead of second-ranked Auburn. Florida was third at 1-over 841. Georgia was fourth at 850, five shots ahead of Arkansas.
“It got a little nerve racking toward the end when it got close, but the guys did a great job down the stretch,” Alabama Coach Jay Seawell said. “It was exciting to see how our team responded when challenged in the final round of an event like the SEC Championships.”
SEC men’s golf championship Sea Island Golf Course St. Simmons Island, Ga.
Final round
TEAM RESULTS
Alabama ......272-274-282 - 828
Auburn ......... 277-280-277 - 834
Florida ........... 283-278-280 - 841
Georgia ......... 273-284-293 - 850
Arkansas ....... 286-280-289 - 855
Ole Miss ........ 287-285-285 - 857
Kentucky ....... 284-294-288 - 866
Tennessee ..... 285-290-293 - 868
Vanderbilt ..... 289-286-294 - 869
S. Carolina .. 289-289-293 - 871
LSU ............. 296-284-297 - 877
Miss. State .. 289-290-300 - 879
Sports, Pages 18 on 04/23/2012