The 1967-68 Buffaloes: Front Row--Dan Dymerski, Bob Reich, Jim English, Doug Hebard. Back Row--Bill Opdyke, Bill Musselman, Steve Parr, Allen Hoos, Chris Scena, Coach Les Fowler.
Fifty Years Ago, CU Won Its Last Men's Conference Golf Title
April 21, 2018 | Men's Golf, Alumni C Club, Scripps Leadership & Career Development
1968 Buffaloes Also Posted School's Best NCAA Finish
BOULDER – Over the last 60 years, Colorado has arguably competed in the three toughest men's college golf conferences in the country, first in the Big 8 and then the Big 12 when Oklahoma State was the dominant program in the nation, and now in the Pac-12, where at least six schools, if not more, are always among the nation's top 25.
The battle always seemed to be for second place in the Big 8 and Big 12, as the Cowboys won 45 league titles between when it joined the league in 1958 and when CU exited for the Pac-12 in 2011. The Buffs won the Big 7 titles in 1954 and 1955 before OSU joined the league, and also captured the 1968 crown, the school's last conference championship in men's golf.
With the Pac-12 Men's Golf Championships next week, CU is marking the 50th anniversary of its last conference champion team.
Oklahoma State won its first Big 8 title in its first year in the conference and went on to reel off 10 in a row going into the '68 Big 8 Championships, which Colorado hosted on May 17-18 at Lake Valley Golf Club.
Coach Les Fowler's Buffaloes had a strong showing in the '67 meet, as Hale Irwin led the Buffaloes to a third place finish in claiming co-medalist honors with Oklahoma State's Grier Jones. But Irwin graduated and Colorado had no returning players that finished in the top 10. However, CU entered with the best dual record – 21-3 – and playing on its home course, ending the Cowboys' streak was possible but certainly not expected.
Colorado opened strong with an even-par 280, led by junior Bill Musselman's tourney best 3-under 67; sophomore Jim English added a 70, followed by seniors Allen Hoos (71) and Chris Scena (72). Nebraska held second, five shots back at 285, while the perennial defending champion Cowboys were nine off the pace at 289.
The second round was plagued by winds that picked up in the afternoon, thus inflating the scores a bit. Musselman carded a 1-over 71 and was in at 2-under 138, good for a one stroke edge over OSU's Jones, who matched Musselman's first round 67 despite the conditions. CU maintained its team lead and had three golfers in the top five, but Oklahoma State took over second place and pulled to within three shots.
Jones would overtake Musselman early on the final nine holes and went on to edge him by two shots to claim medalist honors; he fashioned a 1-over 71 to close with an even-210. But in the end, the Buffs dethroned the 'Pokes and ended their stranglehold on the conference trophy. Hoos paved the way with an even-par 70, the only player in the field to shoot par or better in the final round. English added a 72, Musselman a 74 with Scena and sophomore Steve Parr closing with 81s.
In the third and final round, the "Oklags" as they were sometimes called, held the lead late. After the first two players had finished for each school, OSU had a one-shot edge over the Buffs. But things turned quickly on the 17th hole.
"You have to remember that this was before the days of all the electronic scoreboards and devices, cell phones and handheld internet scoring, so the players and coaches really didn't know precisely where everybody stood in relation to the other teams," English recalled. "I remember coach Fowler as we were coming down the 17th hole telling us things were really tight."
OSU saw its two players, Jim Deaton and Mike Holder, three- and four-putt the green leading to a pair of double bogeys, while Scena parred the hole and English bogeyed. When the smoke cleared, CU went from one down to two up.
The Buffs sealed the Cowboys fate when Scena and English each birdied No. 18 while Deaton and Holder could only manage pars. CU was now ahead by four, and that's where the margin stayed as Jones and Musselman both parred the final two holes.
"We were the first ones to beat OSU," English said. "It's always great to think of that." English also recently relayed this little tidbit:
"Their coach, the legendary Labron Harris, was walking up and down the practice tee at Lake Valley prior to the final round, exhorting his troops. I'll never forget him stopping behind Chris, who was very tall and lanky and had a very herky-jerky takeaway from the ball, especially on his tee shots. He was a little unorthodox, but he could really play. Harris, certainly trying to get into Chris's head, shook his head disparagingly and said, 'I can't believe we're three shots behind you!'
"I was so proud of Chris when he answered, 'And you're going to be more than that by the end of the round!'"
In the end, the Buffs stifled any possible Cowboy comeback by placing three players in the top four and four in the top eight. Colorado recorded a 17-over 857 score to topple OSU by four strokes, led by Musselman's runner-up finish (212, +2), English and Scena tying for third (216, +6) and Hoos in eighth (219, +9); Parr tied for 26th (230, +20). CU and OSU separated themselves from the field, as Nebraska took third, though the Cornhuskers were 20 shots back after entering the final round nine off the pace.
The conference awarded medals for the top three spots and had no spares; newspaper accounts claim that English and Scena flipped a coin for who would take home the medal they shared for third; Scena won.
"The opportunity to play and win the Big Eight against a team that had never been beaten before was a great memory," said English. "We just had five guys who could play as opposed to being a star-studded team."
Fowler quipped afterward that OSU left the course on the old dirt road, eating dust all the way back to Stillwater. As for the Buffaloes, he took the team to the old Aristocrat Steakhouse on Broadway for a celebratory victory dinner. English still has a vivid recollection of what transpired to this day.
"He (Harris) yelled at all his players to grab their stuff and get in the van (he had already snagged the medalist trophy for Jones). This legendary coach, who had never lost the Big Eight title, then stormed off the property and sped down the old gravel road which led into and out of Lake Valley. Not a handshake or a 'well played' or even a 'we'll see you at the NCAA's.' I have never forgotten that image from 50 years ago."
Colorado would go on and tie for eighth at the NCAA Championships in Las Cruces, N.M., to date its highest finish in the event. Scena recently relayed this story:
"After two rounds at the NCAA's, Bill Musselman was in decent position but nothing great. Before the third round began, he came up raving about a new putter – a Ping – no one had ever seen or heard of. He had swapped his putter for this one with a guy on New Mexico and went on to shoot 68-68. The UNM player? It was Mike Goodart, who two years earlier beat CU's Scena in the opening round of the Western Junior where Scena was medalist. Tit for Tat."
Musselman was tied for 31st after two rounds, as he opened with a 74-76; but the back-to-back 68s, the best score in each of the third and fourth rounds, vaulted him into a tie for eighth at 2-over 286. The medalist? OSU's Jones with a then-record 8-under 276.
Musselman was named a first-team All-American for the 1967-68 season – the last Buffalo to earn first-team honors.
Colorado arrived in California Friday for the seventh annual Pac-12 Championships, which are set to begin Monday at Rolling Hills Country Club in Rolling Hills Estates, which is just due south of Los Angeles. The 72-hole event begins with a 36-hole day on Monday (April 23), followed by a single rounds on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The battle always seemed to be for second place in the Big 8 and Big 12, as the Cowboys won 45 league titles between when it joined the league in 1958 and when CU exited for the Pac-12 in 2011. The Buffs won the Big 7 titles in 1954 and 1955 before OSU joined the league, and also captured the 1968 crown, the school's last conference championship in men's golf.
With the Pac-12 Men's Golf Championships next week, CU is marking the 50th anniversary of its last conference champion team.
Oklahoma State won its first Big 8 title in its first year in the conference and went on to reel off 10 in a row going into the '68 Big 8 Championships, which Colorado hosted on May 17-18 at Lake Valley Golf Club.
Coach Les Fowler's Buffaloes had a strong showing in the '67 meet, as Hale Irwin led the Buffaloes to a third place finish in claiming co-medalist honors with Oklahoma State's Grier Jones. But Irwin graduated and Colorado had no returning players that finished in the top 10. However, CU entered with the best dual record – 21-3 – and playing on its home course, ending the Cowboys' streak was possible but certainly not expected.
Colorado opened strong with an even-par 280, led by junior Bill Musselman's tourney best 3-under 67; sophomore Jim English added a 70, followed by seniors Allen Hoos (71) and Chris Scena (72). Nebraska held second, five shots back at 285, while the perennial defending champion Cowboys were nine off the pace at 289.
The second round was plagued by winds that picked up in the afternoon, thus inflating the scores a bit. Musselman carded a 1-over 71 and was in at 2-under 138, good for a one stroke edge over OSU's Jones, who matched Musselman's first round 67 despite the conditions. CU maintained its team lead and had three golfers in the top five, but Oklahoma State took over second place and pulled to within three shots.
Jones would overtake Musselman early on the final nine holes and went on to edge him by two shots to claim medalist honors; he fashioned a 1-over 71 to close with an even-210. But in the end, the Buffs dethroned the 'Pokes and ended their stranglehold on the conference trophy. Hoos paved the way with an even-par 70, the only player in the field to shoot par or better in the final round. English added a 72, Musselman a 74 with Scena and sophomore Steve Parr closing with 81s.
In the third and final round, the "Oklags" as they were sometimes called, held the lead late. After the first two players had finished for each school, OSU had a one-shot edge over the Buffs. But things turned quickly on the 17th hole.
"You have to remember that this was before the days of all the electronic scoreboards and devices, cell phones and handheld internet scoring, so the players and coaches really didn't know precisely where everybody stood in relation to the other teams," English recalled. "I remember coach Fowler as we were coming down the 17th hole telling us things were really tight."
OSU saw its two players, Jim Deaton and Mike Holder, three- and four-putt the green leading to a pair of double bogeys, while Scena parred the hole and English bogeyed. When the smoke cleared, CU went from one down to two up.
The Buffs sealed the Cowboys fate when Scena and English each birdied No. 18 while Deaton and Holder could only manage pars. CU was now ahead by four, and that's where the margin stayed as Jones and Musselman both parred the final two holes.
"We were the first ones to beat OSU," English said. "It's always great to think of that." English also recently relayed this little tidbit:
"Their coach, the legendary Labron Harris, was walking up and down the practice tee at Lake Valley prior to the final round, exhorting his troops. I'll never forget him stopping behind Chris, who was very tall and lanky and had a very herky-jerky takeaway from the ball, especially on his tee shots. He was a little unorthodox, but he could really play. Harris, certainly trying to get into Chris's head, shook his head disparagingly and said, 'I can't believe we're three shots behind you!'
"I was so proud of Chris when he answered, 'And you're going to be more than that by the end of the round!'"
In the end, the Buffs stifled any possible Cowboy comeback by placing three players in the top four and four in the top eight. Colorado recorded a 17-over 857 score to topple OSU by four strokes, led by Musselman's runner-up finish (212, +2), English and Scena tying for third (216, +6) and Hoos in eighth (219, +9); Parr tied for 26th (230, +20). CU and OSU separated themselves from the field, as Nebraska took third, though the Cornhuskers were 20 shots back after entering the final round nine off the pace.
The conference awarded medals for the top three spots and had no spares; newspaper accounts claim that English and Scena flipped a coin for who would take home the medal they shared for third; Scena won.
"The opportunity to play and win the Big Eight against a team that had never been beaten before was a great memory," said English. "We just had five guys who could play as opposed to being a star-studded team."
Fowler quipped afterward that OSU left the course on the old dirt road, eating dust all the way back to Stillwater. As for the Buffaloes, he took the team to the old Aristocrat Steakhouse on Broadway for a celebratory victory dinner. English still has a vivid recollection of what transpired to this day.
"He (Harris) yelled at all his players to grab their stuff and get in the van (he had already snagged the medalist trophy for Jones). This legendary coach, who had never lost the Big Eight title, then stormed off the property and sped down the old gravel road which led into and out of Lake Valley. Not a handshake or a 'well played' or even a 'we'll see you at the NCAA's.' I have never forgotten that image from 50 years ago."
Colorado would go on and tie for eighth at the NCAA Championships in Las Cruces, N.M., to date its highest finish in the event. Scena recently relayed this story:
"After two rounds at the NCAA's, Bill Musselman was in decent position but nothing great. Before the third round began, he came up raving about a new putter – a Ping – no one had ever seen or heard of. He had swapped his putter for this one with a guy on New Mexico and went on to shoot 68-68. The UNM player? It was Mike Goodart, who two years earlier beat CU's Scena in the opening round of the Western Junior where Scena was medalist. Tit for Tat."
Musselman was tied for 31st after two rounds, as he opened with a 74-76; but the back-to-back 68s, the best score in each of the third and fourth rounds, vaulted him into a tie for eighth at 2-over 286. The medalist? OSU's Jones with a then-record 8-under 276.
Musselman was named a first-team All-American for the 1967-68 season – the last Buffalo to earn first-team honors.
Colorado arrived in California Friday for the seventh annual Pac-12 Championships, which are set to begin Monday at Rolling Hills Country Club in Rolling Hills Estates, which is just due south of Los Angeles. The 72-hole event begins with a 36-hole day on Monday (April 23), followed by a single rounds on Tuesday and Wednesday.
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