The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Shufflebotham Fights Through Opening Round Of 2011 NCAA Regionals
5/19/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
May 19, 2011
TUCSON, Ariz. - UAB's Jason Shufflebotham battled his way through the opening round of the 2011 NCAA Men's Golf Regional on Thursday afternoon. Playing in his first-ever NCAA Regional, the junior double bogeyed the 18th hole and finished the day with a six-over par 77.
"I missed the first six greens and just sort of scrambled after that," Shufflebotham said. "I was hitting it left all day today. I was a little nervous off the first tee, but I settled down after that so I don't think nerves got the best of me. I have played in plenty of big tournaments before. I am feeling good but now I have a little pressure on me to play better (Friday). There is still a lot of golf left to be played."
Shufflebotham's NCAA Tournament career began with bogeys on two of his first three holes on the par 71, 7,199-yard Omni Tucson National Golf Course. However, the Presatyn, Wales native settled down to finish with six consecutive pars, which resulted in a two-over par 37 on the front nine.
The back nine began well with Shufflebotham's first birdie on the 516-yard par 5 10th hole to drop to only one-over par. But that was short-lived with back-to-back bogeys on holes No. 11 and 12. Shufflebotham's fortune seemed to have turned when he chipped in from the sand on No. 17 to save par, but then he hit his ensuing tee shot on No. 18 into the lake and had to settle for a double bogey.
"That 18th hole is the toughest on the course," UAB head coach Alan Kaufman said. "If you hit it bad off the tee, there is really no chance for you to make par. Jason didn't hit the ball as well as he is capable of doing. When he has struggled in the past, he can usually make up for it around the green. He just couldn't get it going today, but he had his opportunities. I hope he can capitalize on that and make a run."
Shufflebotham comes into the second round of the three-day, 54-hole event in a tie for 63rd overall. The lowest five teams from each regional and the low individual not on those teams will advance to the finals, which will be conducted May 31-June 5 at Karsten Creek in Stillwater, Okla.
Shufflebotham will tee off at 10 a.m. PT (Noon CT) on Friday. Second round action can be followed live on golfstat.com.
