Good Grief

Tie that binds: Freeman kept Vincent's look but also added his own touches.

The ball-swallowing bluegrass greeting players was exacerbated by swirling gusts that buffeted Pete Dye's 7,450-yard homage to links golf. Winds clocking about 15 miles per hour for most of the week explained the sizable 77.35 stroke average posted by college golf's best and brightest.

In theory, difficult conditions allow the cream to rise to the top, presumably by creaming weaker opponents. That wasn't necessarily the case last week. Top-ranked Alabama, a senior-laden squad with six tournament titles in 2007-08, couldn't find its way, opening with a 21-over 309, closing with a 27-over 315 and finishing 24 shots back in 13th. Second-ranked Georgia and sixth-ranked Charlotte never got comfortable with the environs, either, the two sharing eighth place. Conversely, lower-profile schools such as Kent State (sixth), Louisville (10th) and Middle Tennessee State (15th) exceeded expectations.

It wasn't just marquee teams but individuals who struggled. Freshman phenom Rickie Fowler of Oklahoma State had finished fourth during last fall's NCAA Preview and seemed headed to a first-round lead before hitting two balls in the water on the 17th for a quadruple-bogey 7 that turned a potential 70 into a 74. The next day, he rinsed another ball on 17 (he played it six over for the week), for a 77. Closing with a 70-73 allowed for a back-door T-4, but cost Fowler the Jack Nicklaus player of the year award.

Even more befuddling was the performance of USC sophomore Jamie Lovemark, last year's medalist, who twice shot scores that didn't count toward the Trojans' team total (first-round 79; third-round 78) en route to a T-43 showing.

In preparation for Purdue's big ballpark, UCLA spent the week before nationals getting familiar with the business end of their long irons. During practice rounds at TPC Valencia and Bel-Air, Freeman told his charges to sheath their drivers so they would be left with lengthy shots to the greens. The madness to the method paid off when the Bruins claimed a share of the Day 1 lead with crosstown rival USC at nine-over 297. Chappell's three-under 69 was one of three sub-par rounds on the day.

After a second-round 73, Chappell authored the week's most impressive 18-hole performance, a four-under 68 in the third round (only one other player shot better than 72) that showcased his biggest strength: iron play. Chappell impressively worked his way around the course, flighting his ball low into the wind with the precision of a tour professional. Hitting knockdown shots was a skill he began developing at Royal St. George's during the 2006 British Amateur, with his lifelong swing instructor, Chris Doos, helping him with the technique while carrying his bag that week.

"There are times," Freeman said, "when he can do things that other guys physically just can't do, hit shots that other guys just can't."

Holding a four-shot lead entering the final round, Chappell again seemed to be playing a different course than the other 155 players, making the turn at even par for the day to build a seven-shot advantage. While Washington's Nick Taylor and Indiana's Jorge Campillo posted one-over 289s roughly 90 minutes before Chappell finished play, his quest to become the first NCAA medalist in Bruin history never was in serious danger even as he made four back-nine bogeys to finish with a 76 and a two-under 286 overall.

Just as Chappell built a cushion individually, UCLA seemed to have done the same in the team competition. Starting the final round three strokes up on USC and Clemson, the Bruins made the turn seven ahead of the Trojans and grew the margin to eight through 12 holes.