Wednesday, August 18, 2010

HÄMEENLINA, Finland - Kennesaw State Owls junior Jeff Karlsson finished in fourth place in a field of 144 of the best male amateur golfers in Europe, shooting rounds of 69-68-68-71 for a total of 12-under par 276, at the International European Amateur Championship at Vanajanilinna Golf Club in Hämeenlinna, Finland.

Karlsson, a native of Gothenburg, Sweden, entered the final round just two shots behind the leader and eventual winner, Lucas Bjerregaard of Denmark. He was one-under par for the round and 12-under par for the tournament before making a costly double-bogey on the par-4 sixth hole. He would bounce back during the rest of the round, carding four more birdies over the last 12 holes to finish strong.

“I'm disappointed that I couldn't pull out the win, but at the same time I have so many positives to take with me from the tournament and from the summer overall,” Karlsson said about his performance. “My level of confidence grew a lot after playing in the Scandinavian Masters (European Tour event) and it made me believe I can shoot low numbers no matter where I’m playing or who I’m playing against.”

Karlsson did an excellent job of taking advantage of scoring opportunities, as he made birdies on 13 of the 16 par-5s during the week against zero bogeys, making birdies on each one of them at least three out of four times. The 2010 All-Atlantic Sun Conference Second Team honoree competed as a member of the Swedish National Team, posting the lowest aggregate score amongst his teammates.