Photo Courtesy of CU Sports Information Dept.

University of Colorado senior golfer Jim Grady is seen here. Grady and the Buffs will compete in the NCAA Central Regional beginning today.

Photo Courtesy of CU Sports Information Dept.

University of Colorado senior golfer Jim Grady is seen here. Grady and the Buffs will compete in the NCAA Central Regional beginning today.

The University of Colorado men's golf team will begin play today in the NCAA Central Regional on the same Ohio State University Scarlet Course where the Buffaloes won earlier this season.

The Buffs begin their quest in the 111th NCAA Championships on the same site of CU's win in the Robert Kepler Intercollegiate on April 13. The Buffs defeated five schools in the Kepler that are participating in this week's Central Regional.

The Buffs will be without senior Michael Baird as he was diagnosed with double pneumonia on Monday and faces bed rest this week. He will miss the NCAA Central Regional, and even if CU advances to the national finals later this month, there's no guarantee he'll be able to rejoin the team by that time.

Baird, the Castle Rock, Colo. native who leads the Buffs in stroke average (74.27) will be replaced in the lineup by sophomore Justin Bardgett.

While they lose Baird, the four other Buffs who played in the OSU meet in April will return.

In the Kepler, CU placed three golfers in the top 13 and all five in the top 34 in the 75-man field. Sophomore Luke Symons (tie-2nd), junior Derek Tolan (tie-13th), senior Jim Grady (tie-21st) and freshman Michael Imperato (tie-34th). Baird tied for 10th.

CU head coach Roy Edwards seems optimistic, event though he acknowledges the team loses a key contributor in Baird.

"It's unfortunate, especially finding out less than 24 hours before you're scheduled to leave," said Edwards. "His college career is likely over, but his health is more important than anything else. We're all hoping he can recover quickly, but in the meantime, Justin played very well at The Maxwell and it proves that you always have to be mentally and physically ready to go when something like this happens.

"I still feel good about everything," he continued. "You have to approach it as an opportunity and not with a "woe are we" attitude. Everyone knows they have to step up."

As far as advancing is concerned, every stroke will count. The last seven Central Regionals have all come down to a playoff or one stroke separating the 10 teams that qualified and the 11th that was left on the outside looking in.

In their thirs trip to the NCAA's, CU is seeded No. 21 in the region and will begin play Thursday morning, off the No. 10 tee at 6:00 a.m. MDT. The Buffs are paired with Ohio State and Baylor, the Nos. 19 and 20 seeds, respectively. There are nine top 25 teams, including No. 1 Alabama. Colorado enters ranked No. 65 in the GolfStat rankings and No. 67 in the Golfweek tabulation.

The Buffaloes are one of 27 teams that are vying for a top 10 finish, as the top 10 schools from each regional will advance to the NCAA Championship Finals in West Lafayette, Ind., May 28-31.

Contact Eliot Dempsey about this story at (303) 443-6272 ext. 112 or sports@coloradodaily.com