Hogs travel to Sea Island this weekend for SEC Championships

Season Stats | Championship Central

FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas’ men’s golf team travels to the SEC Championship this weekend, taking on the nation’s best teams in St. Simons, Georgia at Sea Island Golf Club.

The conference championship returns to Sea Island Golf Club for the eighth consecutive year, as all 14 teams will assemble at the par 70, 6,898-yard course on April 21-24. Live scoring is available at Golfstat.com or via the Golfstat Live app.

The SEC Championship has a brand new format this season that includes 54 holes of stroke play the first two days of competition with the top eight teams advancing to match play the final two days. The championship match will take place on Monday, April 24.

The Rundown
Schedule: Friday-Monday, April 21-24
Course: Seaside Course, Sea Island Golf Club
Yardage: 6,898 – Par 70

Championship Format
Friday: 36 holes of stroke play
Saturday: 18 holes of stroke play
Sunday: Quarterfinal and Semifinal Matches
Monday: Championship Match

Razorback Lineup
1. Alvaro Ortiz, Jr. (71.6)
2. Luis Garza, Fr. (71.8)
3. Dylan Naidoo, Fr. (73.4)
4. Mason Overstreet, Fr. (73.7)
5. Charles Kim, So. (73.4)

Best of the Best
The SEC Continues to boast the best golf in the country, holding nine of the top 30 teams in the land, including three of the top 10, more than any other conference in the nation. The Razorbacks have held steady in the rankings all year and enter the league championship ranked No. 29 in the country.

Young Talent
Arkansas features the youngest lineup in the league with one junior, one sophomore and three freshmen. The Razorback lineup has combined for just three years of SEC Championship appearances, the fewest among any program in the conference. Arkansas starts three freshmen, while Georgia and Tennessee start two and no other program starts more than one.

Balanced Attack
Four of the five players in Arkansas’ lineup have finished inside the top five this season, while No. 5 golfer Charles Kim has the only victory with his dramatic finish at the SunTrust Gator to capture the individual title. Alvaro Ortiz leads the team with six top-10 finishes, while Luis Garza has the sixth-best scoring average in the SEC among freshmen.

Head-to-Head in the SEC
Arkansas played 12 of the other 13 teams in the league during the regular season, beating seven of them head-to-head, including then 2nd-ranked Florida on its home course to capture the SunTrust Gator Invitational, one of two team victories this year. The Razorbacks have the third lowest team score in the conference this season with an eight-under 272 at TPC Sawgrass.

Quest for a Championship
The Razorbacks hoisted their lone SEC championship trophy in 1995 and have two individual SEC Champions in the last 21 years, as Sebastian Cappelen captured the title at eight-under in 2013 and Bud Still found himself atop the leaderboard in 1995 at 10-under. A Razorback individual title this weekend would be the second in the last five seasons.

Steady in the SEC
The Razorbacks have finished in the top six at the SEC Championship eight straight years under head coach Brad McMakin, making it the only SEC program to accomplish the feat. Arkansas’ best finish under head coach Brad McMakin came in 2009, posting a runner-up finish led by current #ProHogs David Lingmerth, while last year’s T-3rd place showing was the best finish in the last eight years.