The men’s golf team was victorious in the third annual
Pac-10/Big Ten Challenge at Pacific Dunes GC in Bardon, Ore. The
Bruins’ Gold team competed in the two-day challenge,
undergoing unruly weather and came out on top with score of 885
(+33).
The sixth-ranked UCLA team ended play five strokes ahead of
crosstown rival USC, who concluded the challenge at 890 (+38). USC
was followed by Wisconsin at 894(+42), Northwestern at 898 (+46)
and Stanford at 900 (+48).
At the end of play on the first day of the tournament, the
Bruins led the pack with a score of 594 (+26) after 26 holes.
On the second day, they managed to keep their lead by taking
advantage of the calm winds for the best overall scores of the
tournament.
Individually, USC’s Jamie Lovemark won his first college
tournament at 209 (-4). Lovemark’s final round 67 was three
strokes away from the course record set by former PGA golfer Scott
Simpson.
UCLA’s junior Daniel Im came in second with a total
two-day score of 217(+4). Im preserved his strong first- day
performance when he finished one under-par for the day, shooting a
70 in the final round.
Two other Gold team players that demonstrated their on-field
chops and landed in the top 10 were sophomore Erik Flores and
junior Kevin Chappell. The two ended competition in a tie for fifth
place with a final score of 224 (+11). Flores had an edge going
into the final round, but Chappell caught up by shooting a 72(+1)
in comparison to a 77 (+6) from Flores.
Sophomore Lucas Lee and junior Craig Leslie also contributed to
the Bruin victory. Lee tied for 18th with a final round of 73 (+2)
and a final score of 226 (+13). Leslie shot a 76 during his last
round, and finished play tied for 37th place in the overall
tournament at 231 (+18).
BLUE TEAM: UCLA’s Blue team participated
in the Santa Clara Invitational at Silver Creek Golf Club in San
Jose.
The Blue team fell just short of matching the finish of the Gold
team, coming in second place in the tournament with a final score
of 875 (+11).
UC Santa Barbara won the tournament with a score of 873 (+9).
Third place was a tie between University of San Francisco and
University of British Columbia at 881 (+17).
Brandon Crick of Gonzaga brought home the singles title,
finishing as the only golfer with a round below 70. Coming in
second was freshman Jason Kang, whose final round at 72 (E) placed
him at 212 overall.