Golfers Slip Into Second, But Just One Out Of Lead

Saturday, February 22

Palm Desert, CA

All Day

Colorado

Round Three

February 22, 2014 | Men's Golf

By: David Plati, Associate AD/Sports Information

PALM DESERT, Calif. — The University of Colorado men's golf team slipped into second place here Saturday but is very much in contention for the title as the Wyoming Desert Intercollegiate heads into its third and final round.

Oregon, ranked No. 46 in the nation, wrestled the lead away from the Buffaloes, as the Ducks turned in the second low round of the day to finish 36 holes with a 21-under par team score of 555. Colorado (No. 62) managed a 4-under 284 tally on Saturday for a 556, or 20-under par total, and is thus one stroke back of its Pac-12 rival.

No. 67 Oregon State and Idaho are tied for third, 11 shots back at 566; the Vandals scored the day's best round of 11-under 277, with Santa Clara rounding out the top five at 569.

All four of CU's scorers were under par for the second straight round, all carding identical 1-under par 71s on the 7,305-yard, par-72 The Classic Course layout; it was Colorado's 11th consecutive round at or under par, adding to its team record, the fifth straight one under par, one shy of that mark. Nine of those last 11 rounds have been under par, and CU as team improved to 38-under par for the spring.

"Today we were not at our best, although we still shot a respectable score,” said CU head coach Roy Edwards. “I was very proud in how we were able to battle through the round and still shoot a decent score. Generally, it seemed like a lot of shots were just a bit off with everyone, and I didn't see many putts drop.

“These are fairly normal parts of any tournaments and they can go either way,” he continued. “We definitely did a good job of hanging in. The team is growing up. We are in a good position with a good round tomorrow to win the tournament.”

The oldest and the youngest players competing here for CU are pacing the Buffaloes, as junior David Oraee and true freshman Andrew Bonner are tied for seventh individually with identical 68-71—139 scorecards.

Oraee had three birdies, 13 pars and two bogeys for his round, and has no holes worse than bogey this spring; for 360 holes (20 rounds), he has just five total, all doubles. He has now played the tough par-4 holes (20 total) here at 4-under, still tied for the best in the field but now with just two other players.

Bonner had four birdies, 12 pars a bogey and a double on Saturday; he has played the eight par-5 holes at 5-under par, tied for third best, and leads the Buffs with 10 birdies over the two rounds, tied for sixth in the field.

Freshman Yannik Paul, the tournament's individual leader after a first round 66, came back with a 2-over 74 in the second round; his 4-under 140 total still has him tied for 12th overall. He had three birdies, 10 pars and five bogeys Saturday but remains in the hunt for a top finish. He is also tied for third among the 128-man field in par-5 scoring, as he has played the eight of those through two rounds at 5-under par.

Sophomore Philip Juel-Berg carded a 1-under 71, and stands 3-under (141) through 36 holes, good for a tie for 18th. He had three birdies, 13 pars and two bogeys his second time around The Classic Course and has played the par-3s at 2-under through 36 holes, which is tied for third in the field.

Freshman Jeremy Paul, recorded a second straight 1-under 71 for a 142 total, which has him tied for 26th; that enabled him to set the school record for the most consecutive rounds under par with six (his 10th in the last 11); the old mark of five was held by three players: John Lindberg (in 1987), Patrick Grady (in 2008) and Kevin Kring (in 2011). He had three birdies, 10 pars and five bogeys Saturday.

“Andrew really battled back well in his round to shoot 71, and that was also the case with David, Philip and Jeremy as well, doing the same to shoot the same score,” Edwards noted. “Yannik is a grinder and he just didn't have a good day, and he will be back. Drew had a decent but not great round. With a good final round he can have a high individual finish, and realistically a number of guys can."

Two other Buffaloes are competing individually here, with sophomore Drew Trujillo shooting a second consecutive even-par 72 for a 144 score, which has him tied for 36th. And he fashioned his Saturday score the exact same as Fridays, with three birdies, 12 pars and three bogeys.

Redshirt freshman Kraig McLeod is tied for 82nd after shooting a 4-over 76 Saturday for a 7-over total of 151. He had a birdie and 12 pars but five bogeys on his second round scorecard.

The four scorers each day for the Buffs have been most consistent, as through 36 holes (144 total), they have combined for an eagle, 34 birdies and 95 pars, with just 14 holes worse than par (12 bogeys and two doubles).

Oregon State's David Fink is in the individual lead, as his 8-under 136 score had him one stroke up on Oregon's Ryann Ree (7-under 137), as he shot Saturday's low round of 66 along with Santa Clara's Julien Brun, one of four players tied for third, two off the lead.

The third and final round will get underway at 8 a.m. MST on Sunday with staggered tee times off Nos. 1 and 10; Colorado will again be paired with the Oregon schools and Idaho, starting on No. 1 with tee times from 8:10 through 8:50. The Buffaloes are bidding to win their second tournament of the year, which if accomplished Sunday, would mark the second straight CU won a meet in both the fall and spring, doing that for the first time in 2012-13.

BUFFALO INDIVIDUALS

T7.	Andrew Bonner	68-71—139
T7.	David Oraee	68-71—139
T12.	Yannik Paul	66-74—140
T18.	Philip Juel-Berg	70-71—141
T26.	Jeremy Paul	71-71—142
T36.	*Drew Trujillo	72-72—144
T81.	*Kraig McLeod	75-76—151

*—competing individually.

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS

1.	David Fink, Oregon State	69-67—136
2.	Ryann Ree, Oregon	71-66—137
T3.	Julien Brun, TCU	72-66—138
T3.	Gio Gandionco, Santa Clara	68-70—138
T3.	Sulman Raza, Oregon	70-68—138
T3.	Brad Mason, UT-Arlington	68-70—138

TEAM STANDINGS

1.	Oregon	276-279—555
2.	COLORADO	272-284—556
T3.	Oregon State	283-283—566
T3.	Idaho	289-277—566
5.	Santa Clara	284-285—569
T6.	Iowa State	291-281—572
T6.	TCU	293-279—572
8.	Loyola-Marymount	290-283—573
9.	UT-Arlington	284-290—574
T10.	Cal-Poly	293-287—580
T10.	UC-Santa Barbara	290-290—580
12.	Texas Tech	290-291—581
13.	Nebraska	291-294—585
14.	Kansas State	291-295—586
T15.	San Francisco	290-299—589
T15.	Louisiana-Monroe	294-295—589
17.	Kansas	299-291—590
18.	Denver	298-293—591
19.	UC-Riverside	300-293—593
T20.	Wyoming	298-298—596
T20.	Arkansas-Little Rock	299-297—596
22.	Southern Utah	301-296—597
23.	George Mason	306-305—611