The University of Colorado men will need a major rally in the final round if they hope to qualify for the NCAA Championship Finals as a team for the first time since 2002.
The Buffs have to finish in the top five at the NCAA Tuscaloosa (Ala.) Regional to advance, but after Tuesday’s second round they share eighth place in the 13-team field, 18 strokes behind the fifth-place team.
CU struggled on Tuesday, posting an 18-over-par 306 total, the highest score among the top 11 teams. Colorado sits at 602, 36 strokes behind leader Georgia, the SEC champion. Auburn is in the critical fifth spot, at 584.
CU junior Jeremy Paul, who shared the individual lead after round 1, posted a 5-over 77 on Tuesday, dropped him to 14th place at 145. (Paul is pictured above, with coach Roy Edwards.) The top individual not on a qualifying team also will advance to the NCAA Finals, set for May 27-June 1 at Eugene Country Club in Oregon. If the tournament had ended after 36 holes, William Rainey of the College of Charleston would have gained that berth at 141.
For all the scores from the Tuscaloosa Regional, CLICK HERE.
NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional
May 16-18, 2016 in Tucscaloosa, Ala.
8. Colorado 296-306–602
14. Jeremy Paul 68-77–145; 32. Ethan Freeman 75-74–149; 50. Philip Juel-Berg 74-80–154; 53. John Souza 80-75–155; 71. Wilson Belk 79-83–162.
