Nicoletta Niosi/KANSAN

Jason Sigler, junior, practices his wedge shot yesterday at Alvamar Golf Club. The men’s golf team will travel to Trinity, Texas, on April 29 for the Big 12 Conference Championship.

You haven’t seen Jason Sigler’s name in a stat line for many Kansas men’s golf tournaments this season, but you can find him at practice every day. The Leavenworth junior has played in one golf tournament this season, but he is putting in just as much work as his teammates to improve his game.

As a freshman in 2002, Sigler played in six tournaments. During the 2002-03 season he held a stroke average of 75.6. He played his best tournament of his career at the 2002 Missouri Bluffs Classic, shooting a three-round total of 220. He recorded the highest finish of his career, a tie for 23rd place, at the 2002 Kansas Invitational. Sigler also qualified for the prestigious 2002 Kansas State Amateur championship.

Sigler’s career as a Kansas golfer looked promising after his freshman year, when he gained tournament experience six times. But ever since the 2002-03 season, Sigler has played in only two tournaments. During his sophomore year, he suffered a golfing slump.

“I was struggling just to keep the ball on the course, and I got really frustrated at times with my game,” Sigler said. “You start putting pressure on yourself, and you think you’re getting better, and you really get worse.”

Sigler played in one golf tournament his sophomore season, the Kansas Invitational. He struggled, shooting a three-round score of 242 and tying for 83rd. Even when Sigler was facing his sophomore slump, he kept an optimistic attitude and continued practicing. Now, at the end of his junior year, his game is getting closer to where it was two years ago.

In the fall of 2004, Sigler played in the Kansas Invitational for the third-straight year and finished with a three-round total of 225, tying for 31st. Although Sigler didn’t play in any of the team’s spring tournaments, he suffered a number of near misses in the qualifying rounds. Still, Sigler said his spirits were high.

“I think I’m close, and I feel really good about where I’m going,” Sigler said. “I got a lot of confidence back playing in the Kansas Invitational, and that really helped me.”

Besides displaying a good work ethic, Sigler has one of the best personalities around, said sophomore Tyler Docking.

“He’s just awesome to hang out with off of the golf course, and he respects everybody,” Docking said. “He works harder than anyone out here.”

With one year left after this season, Sigler will spend every minute of his free time on the golf course, improving his game so he can finish strong in his senior year, he said.

“You look at some of the guys on our team like Kevin Ward who didn’t play a lot in his early years, and now he’s one of the best players in the country,” Sigler said. “Luke Trammell is another guy who has gotten a chance to play lately, and he’s been great. It gives me inspiration to play better.”

— Edited by Azita Tafreshi