Alabama Repeats as National Champions


Led by victories by Bobby Wyatt and Robby Shelton in the first two matches, Alabama got off to a hot start in the final round against Oklahoma State and the Crimson Tide rolled home from there for its second straight title in the NCAA Men's Golf Championships.

The final score was 4 and 1 for the Tide.

Wyatt beat the Cowboys' Talor Gooch in the first match 3 and 2 at Prairie Dunes in Hutchison, Kans., and Shelton then edged Zachary Olsen 1-up.

After Windham Clark beat Tom Lovelady 3 and 1 for OSU's first - and ultimately only - point in the final match, Alabama's Trey Mullinax got past OSU's Ian Davis 2 and 1 for the critical third point, giving the Tide their second straight NCAA golf title.

Mullinax got the winning point when he holed an eagle putt from the fringe on the par-5 17th hole.

In the last match, Alabama's Cory Whitsett beat Jordan Niebrugge 2 and 1.

"It's amazing," Wyatt said afterward. "It's something that I wasn't sure if we would win back to back. I definitely believed that we would win one. It's why Coach (Jay) Seawell recruited us. I really believe in him and what he had to say and how he leads us. I can honestly say he's been my father for four years away from home. He's turned all of us from boys into men, even Robby, 18 years old. Obviously birdieing six of the last seven is pretty manly. "He's done that for me, and I can never thank him enough," added Wyatt. "It's been an unbelievable ride, and to go out on top like this, back to back, that's just the cherry on top. It's been unbelievable and just been the best experience of my life."

When asked about his first national championship, Shelton said, "It just means a lot to me. It means the world to me. I spent most of my life on golf, not all of it but most of it, and to be able to do it at this high level means a whole lot to me."

For complete match details, visit http://www.ncaa.com/sports/golf-men/d1/2014-di-mens-golf-team-leaderboard.