University of Missouri
SEC Championship
@MizzouMensGolf Opens Postseason Play at the SEC Championship on Friday
4/14/2016 9:11:00 AM | Men's Golf
Tigers tee off in St. Simons Island, Ga., from Friday-Sunday
COLUMBIA, Mo. - After a strong regular season, Mizzou Men's Golf heads to the Sea Island Golf Club in St. Simons Island, Georgia, to start its postseason at the SEC Championship (April 15-17). The tournament will be played on the club's Seaside Course, a course that will play a par-70 at 6,898 yards.
Mizzou will be playing against some of the top teams in the nation. The conference features eight teams in the GolfStat's Top 25 rankings, along with other quality programs, including: No. 4 Georgia, No. 6 Auburn, No. 7 Vanderbilt, No. 13 South Carolina, No. 14 LSU, No. 17 Alabama, No. 18 Florida, No. 23 Arkansas, along with Kentucky, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Tennessee and Mississippi State. The Tigers will have their work cut out for them, but head coach Mark Leroux's squad has been in the thick of things in the majority of its competitions throughout the 2015-16 campaign.
Leading the Tigers into the postseason is junior Linus Lilliedahl (Sandviken, Sweden), who came alive to finish the regular season. Over his last three tournaments, Lilliedahl finished either first or second among his fellow Tigers golfers, and has not shot over a 74 since the Gator Invitational (Feb. 20-21). The highlight of his season came at the Bandon Dunes Championship (March 6-8), in which he finished tied for fifth overall at a tournament littered with high-end competition.
Next up for Leroux's squad is standout sophomore, Hayden Buckley (Belden, Miss.), who has been a model of consistency for the Tigers all season long. Along with the four times he has paced the Tigers, Buckley is one of two Mizzou golfers that has played in all nine events this season, and also holds the lowest stroke average (72.6) by almost a whole stroke.
Following Buckley in the lineup is junior Euan Walker (Troon, Scotland), who is coming off play at The Hootie at Bulls Bay Intercollegiate (April 3-5), which was the third time this season he sat atop the Tigers' squad leaderboard. Like fellow junior Lilliedahl, Walker has really come on during the season's second half, staying among the Tigers' Top 3 finishers in every event since the winter break. Walker's experience will be key at the SEC Championship, as he is the only Tiger on the traveling squad that has competed at the event before.
Holding down the fourth spot for the Tigers is freshman Matt Echelmeier (Columbia, Mo.), who has built the foundation for a solid college career by playing well during his freshman year. Echelmeier is tied for second in rounds played by any Tiger this season, and is third on the team in stroke average (74.5). Echelmeier will be taking a big step forward, as he is the first freshman to play at the SEC Championship since Walker did it back in the 2013-14 season.
Freshman Preston Fleenor (Kansas City, Mo.) assumes the final lineup spot for Mizzou, and is a second freshman to be playing in the SEC Championship for the Tigers.
For live statistics throughout the event, follow GolfStat.com here. More information on the SEC Championship can be found here.
