#2 Men's Golf 5/18/2012 2:10:00 PM

Stars search for eighth NAIA men's golf title

OCU heads to the NAIA Championships as the top-ranked team in the nation

Michael Palmer tied for sixth at the SAC Championships on April 24.

SALEM, Ore. – No. 1 Oklahoma City University will play for its eighth men's golf national title Tuesday at the NAIA Championships at Creekside Golf Club.
OCU has captured NAIA titles in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007 and 2010.
The Stars earned their national-tournament bid by winning the Sooner Athletic Conference Championships by 29 strokes on April 24 at the Rawls Course in Lubbock, Texas. OCU defeated three teams that qualified for the national tournament including defending NAIA champion No. 2 Oklahoma Christian, No.14 Southern Nazarene and No. 11 Wayland Baptist (Texas).
“We've got momentum,” OCU coach Kyle Blaser said. “We won our last two tournaments of the year so we feel good about ourselves, and to win by 29 shots over a team that was No. 1 at the time made a statement not only to my guys but to everybody in the country that we are here to play. It's been several weeks, I wish it had been the very next week or the very next day, but we still feel good about it.”
The Stars picked up three tournament titles including the SAC Championship and playoff wins at the Texas Intercollegiate and ULM Wallace Jones Invitational, and posted six top-5 finishes this season.
“Golf is all about confidence and once you start getting confident and you believe in yourself a lot if great things can happen,” Blaser said. “You have to eliminate you mistakes. It's just another tournament. It's no different than playing Sunday golf with your mom and dad. We are going to go in there and casually take care of our business.”
The Stars are led by Clark Collier, of Edmond, Okla. Collier, a second-team all-American a season ago, won the individual title at the SAC Championships and posted two other top-5 finishes this season. The senior owns a 72.65 stroke average through 26 rounds this season.
Sophomore James Marchesani, of Roesbud, Victoria, Australia, enters the NAIA Championships with a 71.89 average and four top-3 finishes through 10 tournaments. Marchesani was named a first-team all-American last season.
Taylor Artman, of Norman, Okla., turned in three top-5 finishes this season. The senior posted a 73.18 stroke average in 10 tournaments.
Michael Palmer, a junior from Johannesburg, South Africa, checks in with a 72.92 stroke averages this season. Palmer, a second-team all-American a season ago, finished in a tie for sixth at the SAC Championships.
Elliot Groves, a senior from Winchester, Hampshire, England, earned second-team all-American honors last season. Groves played in six tournaments this season and finished in a tied for sixth at the SAC Championships.
“I've got five guys that are playing really well, and I'd like to see them play up to their abilities,” Blaser said. “If they go up there and take care of business, which I think they will, some of the players on the team will have some individual accolades as well as a team championship. We put the team first, and if you take care of the team individual stuff will take care of itself.”
The Stars will tee off at 9 a.m. CDT Tuesday, and will be paired with Johnson and Wales (Fla.) and Marian (Ind.).
Live scoring for the tournament will be available here.

Round 1 Pairings
Round 2 pairings

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