ROCKY FACE, GA. ? Georgia State's Joel Sjoholm claimed a tie for third place individually as the 23rd-ranked Georgia State men's golf team claimed 16th overall at the Carpet Capital Collegiate Classic at The Farm Golf Club in Rocky Face, Ga. on Sunday.
Sjoholm shot a third-round score of 74 (+2) that included five birdies, three bogeys and two double bogeys to take a tie for third. The former Colonial Athletic Association Golfer of the Year who is ranked the 28th nationally by GolfWeek started from the back nine in his final round and fought to maintain consistent play.
The native of Sweden and Ping/GCAA Third Team All-American birdied the par-three 13th, but followed with a double bogey on 15. He would then par the par-four 16th and 17th, but bogeyed 18 to finish the back nine one-over par (37).
Sjoholm would then recover to show his All-American form on the front nine by opening with three consecutive birdies to improve to two-under par and tie for the lead. However, Sjoholm's drive on the fourth hung low and strayed left, catching the cart path and bouncing just below a line of bushes, which left him an unplayable lie. After hitting a second drive and finishing out the hole, Sjoholm was forced to take a double bogey.
Sjoholm, a senior, would close his round with two additional bogeys and three pars to finish his round with a 74 and near the top of one of the most prestigious events in college golf.
“Today, I caught some good breaks and some bad breaks, but unfortunately there were more of the bad variety,” said Sjoholm. “The round was just up and down, but I played a decent round. All in all, it's just an honor to finish so well in such a great tournament.”
Georgia State head coach Matt Clark liked the way his team's leader played in the tough event.
“Joel proved he is one of the best players in the country this weekend and despite tough conditions he can compete with anyone,” said Clark. “This is a young team, but Joel is a good leader and he has started this year where left off last year. We've got to get them better, but we will with time. They don't give out conference and national championship trophies in September, so we're going to go practice and work to get to that elite level.”
Georgia State played with two freshmen and two sophomores in the event.
As a whole, Georgia State posted its best round of the tournament in the final day by carding a third-round combined score of 299 (+11). Sophomore Tom Sherreard had the best final round for the Panthers at even par, but would have claimed a two-under par 70 had he not been penalized two strokes for a rules violation.
On the par-four third, the native of Great Britain took relief after his ball came to rest at a sprinkler head, but he was informed after his round the action violated the tournament's rules.
The immovable obstruction rule, which usually is played when a ball comes to rest on a sprinkler head and is more frequently used in Europe, is known as a local rule that must be designated allowed in a given tournament. The rule was no in eggect at the Carpet Capital Collegiate, resulting in the penalty.
Had Georgia State not been penalized two strokes, the team would have tied for 14th-place overall with Augusta State and Texas Christian at 34-over par.
Despite the unusually low finish for one of the nation's best teams, Georgia State did see many encouraging trends in the tournament. Sophomores Maurice Jordan and Sherreard each shot their best in the final round of the tournament at four-over par and even respectively. The team's competing freshmen, Alex Castro and Alan Fowler, each played two strong rounds (Castro ? +3, +5; Fowler ? +4, +6), despite a difficult round apiece, but both stated they expect to play much better as the year progresses.
Among the final round's highlights was a putt by Sjoholm on the par-four third. The senior was faced with a 15-foot uphill putt with a sweeping break from left to right that upon sinking he jokingly exclaimed was the best shot of his life.
Georgia State returns to action this upcoming weekend when the 23rd-ranked Panthers will compete in the two-day Ping/GolfWeek Preview at the site of the NCAA Championships in West Lafayette, Indiana. First round action begins on Saturday, September 22 and live scoring can be found at GolfStat.com.
Current Georgia State Final Scores
Georgia State University: +36, 900, 16th
Joel Sjoholm: -4, 212, T-3rd
Tom Sherreard: +7, 223, T-40
Maurice Jordan: +21, 237, T-84
Alex Castro: +22, 238, T-86
Alan Fowler: +22, 238, T-86
