The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
McDowell Tops Both Collegiate Men's Golf Polls
4/24/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
April 24, 2002
BIRMINGHAM ? UAB men's golf All-American and Ben Hogan Award Finalist Graeme McDowell has achieved what no other UAB golfer has ever done. He is ranked No. 1 in both collegiate golf polls.
The Portrush Ireland native moved into the top slot in the Golfweek/Sagarin Performance Index Poll this week, supplanting Florida's Camilo Villegas. In the Golf Stat Cup Standings, McDowell has been steady at the No. 1 spot for a little over three weeks.
McDowell is no stranger to the rankings. Last year, he ranked as high as sixth in the Golfweek/Sagarin Performance Index Poll, stemming from a season with two tournament wins and eight top-10 finishes. He earned Ping Second Team All-American honors and was named the Player of the Year by Conference USA.
This season, McDowell has brought himself to a new level. He has five tournament wins and seven top-five finishes. At the Alabama Invite, he knocked a pitching wedge 124-yards for a hole-in-one down the stretch to lift him to a two-shot win. McDowell was twice named C-USA Golfer of the Month in February and March and was GolfWorld Magazine's College Player of the Week for March 22.
His scoring average is 69.8, almost two strokes ahead of his 71.3 sophomore average.
And these are just a few of his college accomplishments.
In the amateur ranks, McDowell has excelled even more so. He is a two-time member of the Great Britain and Ireland (GB&I) Palmer Cup team, who defeated the U.S. in 2000. Last summer, he was part of the victorious GB&I Walker Cup squad and qualified for the match play portion of the U.S. Amateur.
His lowest competitive round is a 9-under par 63 in the first round of the 2000 European Amateur. He finished second in the tournament with an impressive 20-under par total.
McDowell has a list of accomplishments that continues to grow with every swing of the club. The Blazers will compete in the Atlanta Intercollegiate and the NCAA Regionals later this month with the hopes of making it to their second consecutive NCAA Championship.
