The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
Conference USA Championships
Osborn Wins Conference USA Title, Blazers Finish Second
5/1/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
May 1, 2007
TEXARKANA, Texas - UAB senior Garrett Osborn certainly made his last Conference USA Championship a memorable one, becoming just the second golfer in school history to capture the C-USA Championship medalist honor, capturing the title with a four-under par 212 (69-73-70). Osborn's success helped the Blazers to a second-place finish in the league championship, tying them for the best finish in school history.
"What a terrific performance by Garrett and our entire golf team," head coach Alan Kaufman said. "I couldn't be more proud of the way the entire team performed throughout the weekend. We had four guys place in the top 25 and two in the top 15, so you can't ask for much more than that. Now we just have to hope it was good enough to earn us a bid to the NCAA Regionals."
Osborn, a two-time first-team all-conference performer, entered the final round two strokes off the lead. After shooting even par on the front nine, the Mountain Brook, Ala. native made his move up the leaderboard thanks to an eagle on the par-five 12th hole, and a birdie on 16. A bogey on the 18th hole kept things in doubt, but ultimately, Osborn's final round of two-under 70 lifted him to the title by one stroke over three other golfers (Tulsa's Nicholas Geyger and Brett Myers and Houston's Jordan Irwin).
Osborn's victory was historic has he became the first UAB golfer since Chris Devlin in 1997 to capture the C-USA crown. Furthermore, he is only the third golfer in school history to win a conference title, as Jay Horton captured the 1991 Sun Belt Championship.
Along with Osborn, four other Blazers earned a top-25 finish during the three-day, 54-hole event. C-USA 2007 Newcomer of the Year recipient Brad Smith proved why he earned the inaugural award, coming away with a 12th-place finish with a four-over par 220 (75-70-75). Blake West (79-71-73), who earned a spot on this year's all-freshman team, and sophomore Zach Sucher (78-72-73), a member of the 2007 C-USA second team, both finished tied for 22nd with a 223. It marked the best career finish for West, while Sucher's top-25 finish was the seventh of his season. Redshirt freshman Cathal O'Malley rounded out UAB with a 230 (76-79-75) to finish tied for 42nd overall.
Teams battled against scattered showers and cooler temperatures today. Tulsa earned the team title after taking a comfortable lead following the first two rounds of the championship played on the par 72, 6,935-yard Texarkana Country Club. The Golden Hurricane finished with a nine-under 855, with all five golfers placing in the Top 10. UAB and Southern Miss, who placed third in the team standings, both fired a 291 today.
SMU made the climb for 10th place following the first round to a fourth-place finish for the tournament after getting back the services of C-USA Player of the Year Colt Knost. The senior did not play for the Mustangs on Sunday as he was competing as an amateur in the EDS Byron Nelson Championship.
Houston and UCF finished fifth and sixth, respectively, with scores of 885 (+21) and 886 (+22). Irwin held the lead among the 55-individual field following two rounds of action to lead the Cougars. Junior Giwoh Suh and sophomore Preston Brown both finished among the Top 20 for the Golden Knights.
Memphis and UTEP tied for seventh place with a 891 (+27), while Marshall, East Carolina and Rice rounded out the field.
While Tulsa earns the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Regionals, the Blazers will have to wait and see if their performance earned them a spot during the event held on May 17-19. UAB will be seeking its first NCAA Regional appearance since 2004. Selection for the NCAA Regionals will be made on Monday, May 7, at approximately 5 p.m. CT.
