The Arkansas women’s golf team enters the first round of the NCAA championship in Athens, Ga., with an extra sleeve of course knowledge in their bags.
They can thank their coach, Shauna Estes-Taylor, for the help.
Estes-Taylor, a four-time college All-American and the SEC golfer of the year in 2000, knows the intricacies of the University of Georgia Golf Course after playing it countless times for the Bulldogs.
“I think it just gives us a really solid game plan going into the week,” Estes-Taylor said. “We’ve set up our practice rounds so they’ll be prepared for what they’re going to see.”
The Razorbacks will tee off on No. 10 at 11 a.m. Central in an all-SEC grouping. The Razorbacks’ five golfers - Emily Tubert, Gabriela Lopez, Emma Lavy, Victoria Vela and Regina Plasencia - will be playing with Mississippi State and Vanderbilt.
“This is what we prepared for all year, since we started on Aug. 22,” said Lavy, a junior from Fayetteville. “We’ve done everything we can do. We put in the work and the time and the effort. This is the week for it to show up.
“Everyone’s feeling good and everyone’s excited.”
The Razorbacks have a history at the UGA Course, including a ninth-place finish in the annual Liz Murphey Classic there last fall. Tubert finished in third place at 5-under par in that event behind medalist Jennifer Kirby of Alabama, who finished at 7 under.
Arkansas placed fourth at the Liz Murphey at 5-over par in 2011, five strokes behind champion Alabama.
Seven SEC teams, led by the defending national champion Crimson Tide, are in the 24-team field. Florida, South Carolina and Auburn are also represented.
Arkansas is coming off a tie for third place with Oklahoma State at even par in the NCAA East Regional at Auburn two weeks ago, behind No. 2 Alabama (20 under) and No. 20 Tulane (12 under).
Estes-Taylor said the course layout feels comfortable for her team.
“It plays to our strength because we’re a long-hitting team and they’ve set it up long this week,” she said. “There’s a lot of elevation changes like we see in Fayetteville. It sets up well for our team.”
The Razorbacks will remain with the Commodores and Bulldogs on Wednesday, teeing off from No. 1 at 7:33 a.m. Pairings for the final two rounds will be determined by team placement after 36 holes.
Arkansas is making its third consecutive appearance at the championships and their fourth under Estes-Taylor in her six years at the helm. The team has finished in the top five in 9 of 10 events this season and Estes-Taylor said she feels itis peaking at the right time.
“I feel like we got on the bus ready to take care of business,” she said. “We’ve got to win the shots and if we do that we’ll put ourselves in position to have a chance.”
Sports, Pages 23 on 05/21/2013