It was a series of unfortunate events for the Alabama men’s golf team in Baton Rouge. Despite great individual performances, Alabama was disqualified from the tournament as a team. After the second round, an incorrect scorecard was signed by a player on the team. 

The Crimson Tide also dealt with injuries at the tournament. Alabama senior Davis Shore did not finish the tournament due to back issues. 

After the tournament, Alabama head coach Jay Seawell explained the disqualification. 

“It was strange all that occurred, especially on Saturday after Davis not being able to play,” Seawell said. “Sunday morning… we were hit with another moment when JP [Cave] signed for a wrong score on No. 15. He had a six and signed for a five. With that we were disqualified. I’ve been coaching for 29 years and this is the first time I’ve ever had a kid sign for an incorrect card. Those are the rules of golf and that responsibility at the end of the day falls on me as the head coach.”

Alabama senior Wilson Furr continued his excellent season by shooting a 4-under final round. This allowed Furr to finish even for the tournament. After the tournament, Seawell discussed Furr’s performance. 

“Wilson was certainly a bright spot today,” Seawell said. “He shot a 68 and really had it pumping out there. I am really proud of him.”

Furr played all three days in Baton Rouge. He finished the tournament with a scorecard of 79-69-68. With this, Furr placed third individually. Seawell also discussed the senior’s growth throughout this season. 

“[Furr has] really grown as a player, not only this semester but even more this week,” Seawell said. “I think he’s well on his way to being named an All-American.” 

The team, however, is focused on team honors. Alabama wants to contend for championships and will continue to work towards that. 

Alabama sophomores Thomas Ponder (77-71-75) and Canon Claycomb (74-72-77) also had great weekends. Ponder and Claycomb finished tied for 28th overall at 7-over. Another bright spot for the Crimson Tide was sophomore Jack Goldasich. Goldasich made his debut for Alabama this weekend. He finished the tournament with a score of 78-73-80. Due to NCAA rules, he was not allowed to be substituted into the lineup after Shore went out with an injury. 

Despite troubles in the team event, Alabama had great individual performances. The team looks to build on these performances throughout the season.  

Seawell saw what happened this weekend as a learning opportunity and was able to put into perspective. He wanted to discuss this with the team but then move on and make sure they avoid mistakes like this again. 

“In the end, life has a lot of learning experiences and sometimes they are harder than others, but it is just a game, just golf, and we will learn from it,” Seawell said. “That’s what we talked about at the end of the round. This can define us negatively or positively depending on how we handle it. I believe in the character of this team and we’ll go to work to make sure we are positive.”

Alabama proved itself to be a team that can overcome adversity this weekend. Its best round as a team came Saturday, when the players were without Shore, and they had no fallback plan. The team was also able to recover on Sunday after the news, and team members placed themselves in good positions individually.

Alabama is out of action until March 15, when Alabama will go to Auburn for the Tiger Invitational. The tournament is from March 15 to March 17.