Men's golf team back in Kansas for national tournament

The Eastern Florida State College men's golf team will compete in the NJCAA Division I National Championship for the 25^th straight season.

The Titans come into the tournament ranked ninth in the final NJCAA Division I poll and qualified for the national tournament with their third-place finish at the NJCAA Division I Southeast District tournament.

"Nine shots. We are two and a half shots per man away from the top teams," Eastern Florida State College men's golf coach Jamie Howell said. "We are close, we have had a number of tournaments where we have a bad stretch or slow start and then finish well which is good but we have to find a way to play better."

Eastern Florida State College's Jamie Smith won the individual title at districts and also won the Bantams Invitational as well as the Seahawk Shootout in the fall.

Sophomore Daniel Byers finished 10^th at the district tournament, shooting a 1-over 73 in the final round.

Byers and teammate Horace Pennix are heading to the national tournament for the second straight season and will be playing at Sand Creek Station in Newton, Kansas once again. It is the second straight season that Sand Creek Station is hosting the national tournament.

"Sand Creek is a big venue, plenty of room to play but if it gets windy, it is a bear," Howell said. "We have seen it in every kind of condition. A few years back we shot 7-under in the first round and it was blowing sideways in the final round and finished 13^th," Howell said. "At Sand Creek you can be a little off and be OK but if you are way off, you won't be OK. You have to be patient. Too many times we take on more than we should."

The Titans won the Bantams Invitational and finished in the top five three times over the spring season.

"We have had a number of tournaments where we have a bad stretch or slow starts and then finish well which is good but we have to find a way to play better," Howell said. "We played really good in the second and third round at Barry and again at Nova, so it is there. We have to find it consistently. The 18 holes goes by pretty quick and it will be a constant state of adjustment."

The national tournament will begin on Tuesday with the final round scheduled for Friday.