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| Golfers Tied For Sixth At Pac-12 Championships Release: 04/29/2013 Courtesy: David Plati, Associate AD/Sports Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| LOS ANGELES — The University of Colorado men’s golf team used a strong second round effort to jump five spots after its first round finish and is tied for sixth at the midway point of the Pac-12 Conference Championships, which saw both rounds completed here Monday. No. 1 California owns a healthy nine-stroke lead through 36 holes, standing at 5-under par 695 in finishing ahead of No. 3 and host UCLA (704). No. 4 Washington is in third (709), then there is an 18-shot gap over fourth place, No. 7 Stanford (727). The Cardinal and 11th place Arizona are separated by just 12 strokes, with the Buffaloes, ranked No. 60, near the front end of that logjam, tied for sixth with Arizona State and Oregon State with 730 scores. CU shot the third best score in the second round to vault up five spots in the standings (the Buffs were just three shots shy of the afternoon’s best tally). Cal held an eight-stroke lead after the morning’s opening round, the Bears posting a 12-under 338; most of that margin came thanks to senior Max Homa, who recorded course record a 9-under par 61. UCLA was second at 346, with Washington joining as the only other team under par at 349. The Buffaloes were in 11th with a 20-over 370 total, but were just four shots out of sixth place. "We’re obviously in decent position,” head coach Roy Edwards said. “We finished our first round poorly otherwise we’d all be happier with the day. There was a lot of solid play out there on a tough, challenging course. The Cal kid that shot the 61 had everyone turning their heads, an amazing round.” Colorado’s five scorers in the morning played the last three holes at 8-over, all bogeys with no birdies. “There was absolutely no wind in the morning and just breezy here and there, so the conditions were really good. They changed the pins between rounds, and it felt harder in the afternoon, which should give us some confidence as we were 10 shots better in the second round.” Freshman Philip Juel-Berg paced the Buffaloes on the first day, recording a 70-70—140 scorecard, an even par effort on the 7,236-yard, par-70 Los Angeles Country Club’s North Course design. Tied for sixth in the individual standings, he had two birdies, 14 pars and two bogeys in each round, one of the steadiest performances in CU history by a true freshman in his first conference championship. His pair of 70s match three other Buffs in a league meet as the second best, behind only Mike Mulhern’s 68 in the 1972 Big 8 Championship. There are 16 freshmen in the field (including three redshirts), and Juel-Berg is tied for second among them at the midway point, trailing only UCLA’s Jonathan Garrick, who scored a pair of 68s Monday. His 28 pars lead the field. “Philip was just solid,” Edwards gleamed. “He’s really played well this semester, so I wasn’t surprised at all. He just played good and has really grown a lot this year. He was just very steady and when he doesn’t make any big numbers, he’s playing well because he’s always in good position and almost always gives himself uphill putts.” Senior Derek Fribbs is tied for 27th after he fashioned a 75-70—145 effort (5-over), as he recorded one of only six eagles on the day by opening the second round with one on the 578-pard, par- 5 No. 1. He had three birdies, 22 pars and 10 bogeys otherwise, joining Juel-Berg as the two Buffs who did not make worse than a bogey Monday. Fribbs had it at 3-under after he scored pars on Nos. 2 through 9 and a birdie on 10, but he would bogey the next three holes to fall back to even. Junior Johnny Hayes recorded a steady day, with his 72-74—146 scorecard (6-over) tying him for 31st. His rounds were almost identical, save for a double bogey (on No. 16 in the second round) instead of a par; he had four birdies, 23 pars and eight birdies otherwise on the day. He also bogeyed No. 17 after the double, but regrouped to close the round with a birdie, which was no small feat: No. 18 played as the toughest hole in the second round Monday (and the hardest overall). Sophomore David Oraee carded a 75-72—147 effort on the day, which has him tied for 34th. He scored three birdies, 24 pars eight bogeys and a double in Monday’s 36 holes, as he played the last eight holes even in the afternoon after closing those out at 4-over in the opening round. Senior Jason Burstyn, CU’s No. 1 player and leader in stroke average (72.15), had an uncharacteristic day, shooting 78-77 to sit at 15-over 155, tying him for 63rd. He had four birdies but almost had the same number of pars as bogeys – 16 to 14 – as he only posted two big numbers, one double and a triple. “I know Jason’s going to play better the last two rounds, he’ll gather himself in,” Edwards said. “It’s a testimony to the other guys to be where we are with Jason struggling today. When he gets it going, it obviously is going to be a huge boost for us.” Redshirt freshman Drew Trujillo struggled with a first round 81 but rebounded with a 74 the second time around the North track and also finished up at 15-over 155. He had dramatic reversal, as his morning round featured just four pars and 11 bogeys, numbers he reversed exactly in the afternoon. He was five-over par through seven in round two, but closed with two birdies on the front side and after scoring par and bogey to open the back, finished off his day with seven straight pars. Cal’s Homa owns the individual lead with his 61-70—131 effort, leading teammate Michael Weaver by three shots. Just five players broke par with five others matching it through two rounds in the 72-man field. The third round will commence at 9 a.m. Tuesday off both the No. 1 and 10 tees, with the final round Wednesday in the same format. Colorado will be paired with Arizona State and Oregon and will begin play off the back nine on Tuesday in the first six groups to start the day. “It’s the halfway point, we have 36 more holes, we just have to keep being smart and decisive, and things should all work out,” Edwards said. NOTES: Fribbs’ eagle was the 20th by the Buffaloes this season; CU entered the meet with the third most in the nation … The Pac-12 Network will air highlights of the championship on Saturday, May 11, at Noon MDT.
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