Men's Golf Releases (2004-05) - NCAA Championships - Guilford College

• GUILFORD DOMINATES TO CAPTURE DIVISION III CHAMPIONSHIP

The perfect scenario unfolded for Guilford College.

Near the end of the fourth and final round of the NCAA Division III men's golf championship on May 12, the Quakers held an insurmountable lead and team members Colin Clark as well as Dave Patterson tied for medalist honors.

Coach Jack Jensen and his dominating group could ride into the Florida sunset at Mission Inn Golf and Tennis Resort.

Guilford played in the town of Howey-In-The-Hills, outside Orlando, but it may as well have been in Dodge City for all the team's rapid-fire accuracy.

The other 22 squads had been vanquished by at least 25 shots, including runner- up Redlands and the Quakers' crosstown rival and third-place finisher, Greensboro College. Guilford could savor its third national championship in men's golf, matching the 1989 NAIA title and 2002 NCAA Division III crown.

But a delay came as the early evening sun framed the par-72 El Campeon Course. An CAA official, puttering along in his golf cart, temporarily dampened Jensen's joy by insisting that Clark and Patterson must face each other in a playoff.

There would be no tie for individual champion.

"This is wrong!" Jensen recalls shouting to the NCAA liaison for golf. "It really bothered me. But we had no choice. It was in the handbook, and I didn't want to do anything to jeopardize our championship."

So Clark and Patterson returned to the 18th tee for the playoff. They were battling for a rare NCAA individual title, yet they had plenty of fun.

"We joked around the whole time," said Clark, a Durham native and Chapel Hill High graduate. "We were already ecstatic about winning the team championship, so we weren't too serious about (being medalist)."

Added Patterson: "Win or lose, we were still bringing back the (team) trophy."

Clark earned medalist honors when he made a par-4 while Patterson missed his par putt from about six feet. The 6-foot-5 golfer became Guilford's third individual national champion, joining NAIA winners Bill Brooks in 1983 and Rob Odom in '87.

"This is just the second tournament I've ever won," said Clark, a sophomore.

Clark and Patterson, a senior, smoked the field of 120 golfers by recording four-round totals of 290, 2-over-par.

Guilford's final team score was 1,174, 22-over and well ahead of the 1,199 posted by Redlands and 1,205 recorded by Greensboro. Methodist College of Fayetteville, ranked first in the nation entering the tournament to Guilford's No. 2, rallied to finish fourth, 33 strokes off the pace.

"I always tell these guys, usually over four days, 72 holes . the best team's going to win," said Jensen, who completed his 29th season as Guilford's golf coach. "In 2002 we had the best team and in 2005 we had the best team."

"(National championships) all feel the same - they all feel great. The others were a lot closer, so it was probably more emotional when we won those."

Jensen's emotions gave way to satisfaction. His team produced the tournament's two lowest rounds and won by the largest victory margin since 1999.

His two best players and the two best players in the tournament - Clark and Patterson - finished two shots better than Michael Lemmo of LaGrange. The duo was three ahead of Loras' Pete Weber and four in front of Guilford teammate Brant Stovall, a North Stokes product who joined his higherfinishing buddies as PING first-team All-Americans.

Greensboro College's Ryan Sharpe (Ragsdale) tied for sixth to join the group of All-Americans. Greensboro College's Rocky Manning (High Point Wesleyan) completed the numerous local players in the top ten by rallying to place ninth.

Clark, Patterson and Stovall, a junior, were joined by teammates Jeff Osberg (tied for 22nd at 307) and Joseph Poplin (tied for 81st at 320). Poplin, a sophomore from Eden Morehead, struggled with three straight rounds in the 80s before busting through with four birdies and a 1-over-par 73.

Poplin jumped from 103rd to 81st place and helped Guilford feel no pressure while firing a final-round 290. It was the tournament's second lowest round after the Quakers' season-best 285 (minus-3) in the second round, which enabled the team to take a 10-shot lead it would never relinquish.

"The guys were like the Five Musketeers," said Jensen. "They were all pulling in the same direction. They get along so well together. They've developed a real camaraderie and I think that's pretty important."

Clark and Patterson provided the best mix of togetherness and results. Patterson was the only senior among Guilford's five players in the national tournament, and he became the school's first four-time All-American in any sport. The native of Ft. Pierce, Fla., also finished second individually in 2002 as the Quakers captured their first NCAA Division III crown.

"The first one is always the most special," Patterson said. "But I feel good. It's nice to win two (team titles) and we finished second in another where we lost by one shot. I don't know what to compare it to."

Added Jensen: "Dave's endured a lot. He's a survivor."

Clark had become Mr. Runner-up entering the NCAA meet. His three straight second- place finishes included the Old Dominion Athletic Conference tournament April 23-24 at Olde Mill Golf Club in Laurel Fork, Va.

Clark, however, wasn't as frustrated by his individual finish as he was by Guilford's third-place ODAC placement. A team that trails Randolph-Macon and Washington & Lee normally doesn't do well in the national tournament.

"That was a huge disappointment," Clark said. "We were the favorites, and then to finish third was very, very disappointing."

Three weeks later, Guilford reigned as national champions.

"We came through to play the best we've played all year," Clark noted.

Even with the forced playoff, the Quakers' journey reached a perfect conclusion.

-Story and photo courtesy of Tom Berry, Triad Golf Today.  Click here to go to the Triad Golf Club Website