May 19, 2012

ATHENS, Ga. -- Ole Miss men's golfer Joe David saw his season come to an end Saturday, as the senior shot a 1-over 72 to finish two shots away from forcing a playoff for a spot in the NCAA Championships.

David finished at 1-under for the tournament.  Philip Chian of Long Beach State received the regional's lone individual bid to the NCAA Championships, finishing at 3-under.

No. 4 Alabama bested second-place East Carolina by 25 strokes for the regional championship.  No. 10 North Florida, No. 24 Georgia and Iowa round out the top-five that will advance to the championships in Pacific Palisades, Calif.

" I am somewhat sad, because it’s the end of a great college career," said Ole Miss head coach Ernest Ross.  "It was tough out there today.  He had a lot of in between shots.  He just didn’t make a lot of putts, but he hung in there and fought.”

After firing a 68 in Friday's second round, David matched his first round score with a 1-over.  The Madison, Tenn., native was steady, bogeying just two holes and picking up a birdie on the 12th, but fell short of Chian who shot a 70 and entered the final round with a one-shot lead.  

“I just couldn’t get anything going today," said David.  "It seemed like I made all my putts yesterday.    I would like to have made some putts today, but kind of struggled coming in.  The heat got to me a little and I had a little bit of a headache.  That’s golf."  

A second team All-SEC selection, David finished eighth overall to earn his sixth top-10 finish of the year.  

For his career, David will finish third in Ole Miss history in stroke average.  In four years as a Rebel, David played in every tournament and picked up five top-five, 11 top-10, and 28 top-20 finishes.  He appeared in four NCAA regionals, earning a top-10 finish in two, and was named to the SEC All-Freshman team in 2009.  

“When we recruited him, we thought he was that type of player, and he proved to be," said Ross.  "He made All-SEC twice in his career and came so close to making the NCAA Championships today as an individual.  He’s been a great player and a great ambassador for Ole Miss.”

"It hurts to see my college career come to an end," said David, "but I had fun doing it these last four years.”

TEAM STANDINGS
NCAA ATHENS REGIONAL
1     Alabama  269-276-283--828
2     East Carolina  276-281-296--853
3     North Florida  271-291-296--858
4     Georgia  280-288-296--864
5     Iowa  288-293-285--866
INDIVIDUAL STANDINGS
1     Justin Thomas-Alabama  67-67-70--204
2     Bobby Wyatt-Alabama  66-67-72--205
3     Cory Whitsett-Alabama  68-69-71--208
T4     Kevin Aylwin-North Florida  65-71-74--210
T4     **Philip Chian-Long Beach State  71-68-71--210
T4     Ryan Eibner-East Carolina  67-68-75--210
7     T.J. Mitchell-Georgia  68-70-73--211
T8     Sean Dale-North Florida  69-73-70--212
T8     Joe David-Ole Miss  72-68-72--212
T8     Taylor Floyd-Augusta State  67-74-71--212
T8     Ian Vandersee-Iowa  71-75-66--212
**Advances To NCAA Championships As Individual Competitor