After taking a few days off from practice and tournaments, the Alabama men’s golf team will head to the Linger Longer Invitational this weekend feeling refreshed and ready to compete at a familiar event. The Crimson Tide is a three-time champion of the invitational located at the Reynolds Landing Golf Club in Greensboro, Ga.
Alabama coach Jay Seawell said there is a comfort level going into the Linger Longer Invitational.
“We like the golf course a lot; it sets up good for us,” Seawell said. “So we like the tournament. It’s a relaxed atmosphere; it’s completely different atmosphere than your standard tournament week. We have private housing so it’s a bit more relaxed than in the past. And that’s why I think we’re successful.”
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Having almost two weeks off from a tournament, Seawell gave his team the time off to refocus on things other than golf. Seawell said his team needed the break to get back into the right mindset.
“They needed to catch up on their schoolwork and also clear their minds,” Seawell said. “Especially in golf, where you do it over and over, your mind needs to be relaxed just like your body needs to relax. We did most of it for mental relaxation but a little of it for physical.”
Tying in fourth place in the Southern Highlands Collegiate Masters two weeks ago, the disappointing ending caught the Crimson Tide off guard. Seawell said his team learned a lot from the loss.
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“We learned that you don’t win because you show up,” Seawell said. “And we’re very good, but there are also very good teams that are going to be successful. We have to get back to the things that make us successful from worrying about our day-to-day preparations to what we can control.”
Seawell also said he believed his team has learned from their past mistakes and can improve now that they are entering the championship crunch time.
“I think if you start to look in the direction of what you have done, you’re looking improperly,” Seawell said. “So I do believe we have positive feelings when we go there because we’ve success. We will rely on our successes to help guide us in the present moment. Basically in athletics, you better stay in the present. If you live in the past or the future, you can have some difficult things happen.”
After having the past two weeks to rest and practice the basics, Seawell and the team are confident they can perform at its highest standard.
“I think they will be nice and ready,” Seawell said. “I think they understand what is in front of them. We understand that we’re getting to that time that I call an urgency. We’re getting closer and closer to the championships. We really only have two more tournaments to play in, prepare for [the postseason] and we need to start doing that and get back into some good habits and create good results.”
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