From a quick glance at the scorecard, it would appear that the North Carolina men’s golf team’s first-place finish at this weekend’s Irish Creek Intercollegiate was never in jeopardy.
The Tar Heels were on top of the leaderboard after each of the tournament’s three rounds.
But UNC’s first win of the spring season was anything but easy. Due to a slow start in Sunday’s final round, the Tar Heels dropped to as low as fourth place on the last day of competition.
The Tar Heels recovered on the back nine, playing their best golf on some of the most difficult holes. The team finished with a seven-over-par 859, two shots ahead of second-place N.C. State.
“We got off to a really good start in the first two rounds, but in the final round we started really poorly,” coach Andrew Sapp said. “But they really hung in there and fought hard. It was a great way to win the tournament, because they basically had to grind out the victory.”
Junior Andy Sajevic, who finished tied for fourth overall with one-under-par, said the last four holes were the toughest and most important.
“We could tell that we were playing around the lead, and we needed to play the last four holes well to win the tournament,” Sajevic said. “I thought the whole team did a great job of staying mentally tough and focused, and we finished well.”
The golfers’ perseverance gave the team a much-needed boost of confidence at a critical time in the season. Sapp, who earned his second win at UNC, said the club at Irish Creek has a similar layout to the course hosting the ACC Championships, which start April 26. He said he hopes the Tar Heels’ success this weekend will carry over to the postseason.
The win also helps UNC’s chances for a bid to the NCAA regionals in May.
