Atlantic 10 Championship Central

LUTZ, Fla. – The La Salle golf team will compete against nine other schools to be named the 2014 Atlantic 10 Champion in the 54-hole event that begins on Friday morning at TPC Tampa Bay. The Explorers have posted their best-ever finish and score at the A-10 Championship the past two seasons and will look to continue that trend this weekend.
 
"This should be one of the better teams we've taken to A-10's in recent memory, so our expectations are a little higher than in the past," head coach Brad Kane said. "We've got a shot to finish in the top half of the conference, which hasn't been done in a long time, if ever. 
 
"But it won't be easy," Kane continued. "There are lots of schools we'll be very competitive with, so we're looking forward to it.  It's been a great year for us so we're looking to close it out on a high note."
 
TPC Tampa Bay is one of the top public courses in Florida, receiving a four-and-a-half star rating from Golf Digest. It has annually been voted the top golf course in the Tampa Tribune's Readers Choice Awards and has also been named the top golf facility in West Central Florida and one of the top five in the State by the readers of Florida Golf Magazine.
 
TPC Tampa Bay was Recently Rated #13 Best Public Golf Facility by GolfWorld Magazine's 2010 Reader's Choice Poll. The par-71 course plays 6,898 yards from the tips and features a slope/rating of 74.2/140.
 
Senior Mike Johnson has provided Explorer fans with one of the best golfing careers in recent memory and will look to cap it off with an all-conference performance. He tied for 19^th last year with a two-over score of 218, which was the lowest by an Explorer at A-10s. As a sophomore, he shot a two-under score to finish seventh.
 
Junior Greg Goodreds had an outstanding fall and a solid spring to own the team's second lowest scoring average. Senior Tyler Fewell looks to end his career on a high note with a strong showing at TPC Tampa Bay, while a pair of underclassmen, sophomore Justin Smith and freshman Joe Markmann have shown glimpses of their vast potential this spring.

Live statistics will be available via www.golfstatresults.com. Look for a story and video recap following each round on goexplorers.com.