The University of Mississippi Athletics
New Leaders Emerge For Men's Golf
11/30/2015 | Men's Golf
OXFORD, Miss. - The Ole Miss men's golf team finished the fall season with new leaders emerging and flashes of what Rebel head coach Chris Malloy sees as signs of great potential from his players.
The Rebels lost two seniors to graduation this past year in Blake Morris and Joe Lewis, that combined for nine top-20 finishes in their finals season as Rebels. They also competed this fall season without sophomore Josh Seiple, who was out with an injury. The Castle Rock, Colorado native was fourth on the team in stroke average as a freshman, competing in 32 rounds of golf.
However, there are no excuses for the men's golf team. They showed they can be a threat in the SEC with the emergence of young talent and new leadership.
Freshman Braden Thornberry arrived in Oxford wide-eyed and ready to set his mark on the program. Malloy noted that it took some time for Thornberry to adjust to college life, but he is making great progress.
"I think he will be the first to admit that once the lights came on in college life, his head was spinning a little bit," Malloy said. "There is an adjustment just like any other freshman that comes through college. We had some concerns for Braden to begin with there, but he has done a tremendous job of really maturing and getting his feet on the ground."
"I think you are about to see him play some amazing golf. We saw some glimpses and stretches during rounds of really good golf from Braden. Once he can finish out rounds and fix some errors that you see from any freshman, he will be close to playing some great golf."
Thornberry made an instant impact for the Rebels, competing in every tournament this fall. The Southaven, Mississippi native found the top-20 in just his second tournament, as he tied for 20th at the Shoal Creek Invitational in Birmingham, Alabama in September.
At his next tournament, the Erin Hills Intercollegiate, Thornberry found his stride. He fired the team's season-best round score of 67 in the second round. Thornberry carded a 72-67-76--215 on the tournament to tie for 8th place. The team rallied behind him, posting a fourth place finish with a team total score of 868, the lowest team-score of the season.
"Our best finish was at Erin Hills, which was a very tough golf course with difficult conditions," Malloy said. "We played our best; it's not that we had our A game, but we were tough that week. I think they look back on that weekend and see how they kept their emotions in check, grinding stuff out, where in other tournaments you may let that get out of hand a little bit. We can look back on it and get some much needed confidence moving forward."
Seniors Forrest Gamble and Connor Davis look to provide the leadership the Rebels need as they head into their final season. The three-year lettermen combine for a total of 152 rounds of golf in their careers, and both have top-5 finishes in their bag as they look to lead the Rebels to a consecutive appearance in the NCAA Championships.
"I look for both guys to go out on a high note," Malloy said. "I know this program means a lot to them, and they are working really hard. When I met with them after this last tournament, I talked to them about putting a little too much pressure on themselves to do too much because it is their last year. They just need to relax, enjoy the process a little bit, and I think you will see both of their best semesters as Rebels throughout the spring."
Juniors Ben Wolcott and Noah West provided consistency for the Rebels this fall. Wolcott, who led the team last year in stroke average found the top-10 at the Shoal Creek Invitational, posting a score of 75-70-72--217 to tie for 9th place, and both juniors found the top-20 at the Erin Hills Intercollegiate.
The men's golf team starts their spring season back up Feb. 22, 2016 at the Mobile Sports Authority Intercollegiate in Mobile, Alabama. They will make five tournament appearances, including tournaments in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico and Boca Raton, Florida before competing for the SEC Championship in Sea Island, Georgia April 15-17.
Players Mentioned
