Colorado University Athletics
Tuesday, October 1
Erie, Colo.
All Day
Colorado
vs
Third Round
Ty Holbrook carded CU's low round in The Simpson Tuesday -- a 6-under par 66
Photo by: Lexi Hartmann
Buffs Finish Second In Own Simpson-CU Invitational
October 01, 2024 | Men's Golf
Biwer Earns Tri-Medalist Honors For First Career Win
ERIE — The University of Colorado men's golf team never caught fire like it had in the first two rounds and slipped into a second place finish here Tuesday as the 14th Mark Simpson-Colorado Invitational came to a close.
The Buffaloes still recorded their third subpar team score of the tournament – a 5-under 283 – and finished with a 32-under 832 total, their third-best performance in history on a par-72 course. The issue Tuesday was that the in-state rival Colorado State Rams, nine behind CU and in third place, did catch fire and posted an 18-under 270 – the single-lowest round of the day and second-best in the event, to vault into first with a 36-under 828 score.
CSU became the third team to win the Simpson after entering the last round in third, joining Washington State in 2013 and Wyoming in 2022. St. Mary's the first round leader, finished third (833), with Wyoming nabbing fourth (835) and Texas-El Paso fifth (840) in one of the most competitive Simpson invites to date.
Despite the mildly disappointing second place finish, a record eight Buffaloes finished under par for the tournament, with the ninth ending at even-par. The nine combined to record 12 rounds in the 60's (seven players had at least one), 18 subpar scores (all) with five even-par efforts, meaning 23 of the 27 rounds were par or better; the high score was a single 74.
"We kept battling all day, it just seemed like we could never get anything going," CU head coach Roy Edwards said. "The guys always do a good job those times when we are not starting out their best to keep competing and finding their way throughout the rounds, but today, we just didn't have a hot streak. I thought when we were about four or five shots down with three or four holes to play, it was effectively a tie based on the holes we had left but we just weren't able to capitalize."
Entering this week, senior Justin Biwer had six top five finishes in his career – one second, one third, three fourths and one fifth – having come oh-so-close on several occasions of seeing his name on top of the leaderboard. He finally broke through and tied for medalist honors after a career-best 13-under score of 203 over 54 holes on the 7,787-yard, par-72 Colorado National Golf Club course layout. He turned in rounds of 67-68-68, with his lone bogey came on the 12th hole in round one, from there he went on to tie the school record of 42 straight holes of par or better, which included the fourth- and fifth bogey free rounds of his career. He finished with 14 birdies and 39 pars in mastering the par-4 holes, which he played at 10-under – three better than anyone else in the 104-man field.
It's just the second 13-under par performance by a Buffalo in a 54-hole tournament; Adam Matteson had the same total in the 2021 Simpson. It's the fifth overall, one in a shortened 36-hole event (also in The Simpson) and two on par-71 courses, one of which he did previously and the other in a 72-hole tourney.
"I can tell you from this time last year, my goal was to win this tournament after finishing second and then third the year before," Biwer said. "There honestly isn't a tournament that I would have wanted to win more. Regardless of not winning outright, I'm super happy with the way that I played and to put up three really good scores. This is the most complete tournament I've played, my best ever at 13-under."
Biwer was most pleased with his short game and putting. He had 78 total putts over the three rounds – 23 in the first, 29 in the second and 26 on Tuesday. But he's also excited about the team overall.
"This team is super-competitive, and we have the deepest roster we've ever had by far," he said. "We got ranked 25th in the preseason (by Golf Channel), and we're proving it. It shows that on paper, you could put any one of us in the lineup and we'll be right there competing with everyone else."
"Justin's been knocking on the door for a while, he's one of the best players in our school history, so it's good to see him finally finish on top of the results and be one of the tri-champions this week here at home," Edwards said.
Sophomore Brandon Knight tied for 10th, finishing with an even-par 72 for 7-under 209 total. He had a solid performance, with 12 birdies and 37 pars and only five bogeys, with a sparkling bogey-free second round 67. He had a career-best span of 36 holes of par or better in the midst of tournament, played both the par-4's and par-5's at 4-under.
Senior Dylan McDermott closed with an even-par 72 for a 6-under 210 total, which tied him for 14th; the even-par round was his 12th straight of par or better to open the season, the dozen matching the school record he set for the most consecutive rounds he set during his sophomore season. He had 12 birdies and 36 pars with only six bogeys, and played the challenging CNGC par-3's at 1-over, and was under par on the par-4's (-3) and par-5's (-4).
Senior Freddy Eisenbeis posted three straight subpar rounds and after a 1-under 71 for the final 18 holes, he tied for 18th with a 5-under 211 total. As were his teammates, he was consistent over the two days with 12 birdies and 35 pars with just seven bogeys. He was even on the par-3's, 2-under on the par-4's and 3-under on the par-5's.
Junior Hunter Swanson tied for 28th after wrapping things up with a 1-over 73; that gave him a 4-under 212 overall score. His 15 birdies were second-most by a Buff (tying for fifth-most in the field), with 29 pars, nine bogeys and a double. He played the par-3's well (even) and the par-4's and par-5's both at 2-under.
The Buffaloes still recorded their third subpar team score of the tournament – a 5-under 283 – and finished with a 32-under 832 total, their third-best performance in history on a par-72 course. The issue Tuesday was that the in-state rival Colorado State Rams, nine behind CU and in third place, did catch fire and posted an 18-under 270 – the single-lowest round of the day and second-best in the event, to vault into first with a 36-under 828 score.
CSU became the third team to win the Simpson after entering the last round in third, joining Washington State in 2013 and Wyoming in 2022. St. Mary's the first round leader, finished third (833), with Wyoming nabbing fourth (835) and Texas-El Paso fifth (840) in one of the most competitive Simpson invites to date.
Despite the mildly disappointing second place finish, a record eight Buffaloes finished under par for the tournament, with the ninth ending at even-par. The nine combined to record 12 rounds in the 60's (seven players had at least one), 18 subpar scores (all) with five even-par efforts, meaning 23 of the 27 rounds were par or better; the high score was a single 74.
"We kept battling all day, it just seemed like we could never get anything going," CU head coach Roy Edwards said. "The guys always do a good job those times when we are not starting out their best to keep competing and finding their way throughout the rounds, but today, we just didn't have a hot streak. I thought when we were about four or five shots down with three or four holes to play, it was effectively a tie based on the holes we had left but we just weren't able to capitalize."
Entering this week, senior Justin Biwer had six top five finishes in his career – one second, one third, three fourths and one fifth – having come oh-so-close on several occasions of seeing his name on top of the leaderboard. He finally broke through and tied for medalist honors after a career-best 13-under score of 203 over 54 holes on the 7,787-yard, par-72 Colorado National Golf Club course layout. He turned in rounds of 67-68-68, with his lone bogey came on the 12th hole in round one, from there he went on to tie the school record of 42 straight holes of par or better, which included the fourth- and fifth bogey free rounds of his career. He finished with 14 birdies and 39 pars in mastering the par-4 holes, which he played at 10-under – three better than anyone else in the 104-man field.
It's just the second 13-under par performance by a Buffalo in a 54-hole tournament; Adam Matteson had the same total in the 2021 Simpson. It's the fifth overall, one in a shortened 36-hole event (also in The Simpson) and two on par-71 courses, one of which he did previously and the other in a 72-hole tourney.
"I can tell you from this time last year, my goal was to win this tournament after finishing second and then third the year before," Biwer said. "There honestly isn't a tournament that I would have wanted to win more. Regardless of not winning outright, I'm super happy with the way that I played and to put up three really good scores. This is the most complete tournament I've played, my best ever at 13-under."
Biwer was most pleased with his short game and putting. He had 78 total putts over the three rounds – 23 in the first, 29 in the second and 26 on Tuesday. But he's also excited about the team overall.
"This team is super-competitive, and we have the deepest roster we've ever had by far," he said. "We got ranked 25th in the preseason (by Golf Channel), and we're proving it. It shows that on paper, you could put any one of us in the lineup and we'll be right there competing with everyone else."
"Justin's been knocking on the door for a while, he's one of the best players in our school history, so it's good to see him finally finish on top of the results and be one of the tri-champions this week here at home," Edwards said.
Sophomore Brandon Knight tied for 10th, finishing with an even-par 72 for 7-under 209 total. He had a solid performance, with 12 birdies and 37 pars and only five bogeys, with a sparkling bogey-free second round 67. He had a career-best span of 36 holes of par or better in the midst of tournament, played both the par-4's and par-5's at 4-under.
Senior Dylan McDermott closed with an even-par 72 for a 6-under 210 total, which tied him for 14th; the even-par round was his 12th straight of par or better to open the season, the dozen matching the school record he set for the most consecutive rounds he set during his sophomore season. He had 12 birdies and 36 pars with only six bogeys, and played the challenging CNGC par-3's at 1-over, and was under par on the par-4's (-3) and par-5's (-4).
Senior Freddy Eisenbeis posted three straight subpar rounds and after a 1-under 71 for the final 18 holes, he tied for 18th with a 5-under 211 total. As were his teammates, he was consistent over the two days with 12 birdies and 35 pars with just seven bogeys. He was even on the par-3's, 2-under on the par-4's and 3-under on the par-5's.
Junior Hunter Swanson tied for 28th after wrapping things up with a 1-over 73; that gave him a 4-under 212 overall score. His 15 birdies were second-most by a Buff (tying for fifth-most in the field), with 29 pars, nine bogeys and a double. He played the par-3's well (even) and the par-4's and par-5's both at 2-under.
Buffaloes Finish Second In Own Simpson-CU Invitational / 2-2-2
Four Buffaloes competed here individually, three finishing under par and one even.
Sophomore Ty Holbrook topped the quartet, as he fashioned a career-best 6-under 66 and zoomed into a tie for fifth place with a 10-under 206 score, also a collegiate best. He led the Buff contingent with two eagles as well as 16 birdies, both tying for the most in the field. He was actually 2-over par after four holes, with the six toughest holes of the round ahead of him; he went on a rampage, scoring eight birdies over his last 12 holes, playing those six toughest at 2-under. He played the par-4's the best at 7-under, tied for second-best in the field, and bested all nine players here who were playing as individuals.
"I knew I was in around 30th place, and that I had to turn things around," Holbrook said. "I wasn't playing as bad as my score projected. I had to capitalize on opportunities, especially after No. 4 where I hit it to four feet and missed it for birdie. I had confidence that I could turn it around. I knew I had opportunities coming up, I just had to stay in the present and not worry about the outcome, taking it one shot at time. I felt I did a pretty job of keeping a level head and when I had a bad shot to not let it get to me. I knew at some point that things we going to pay off."
Senior Jack Holland tied for 28th, finishing with an even-par 72 for a 4-under 212 total. He was consistent both days, with nine birdies and 40 pars and just five bogeys, which at one point including a career-best span of 26 straight holes of par or better. Like Biwer and Eisenbeis, he played the tough par-3's at CNGC even overall.
Freshman Parker Paxton had his best finish as a Buffs, tying for 36th with a 2-under 214 after closing with an even-par 72. He had five birdies and eight pars with five bogeys Tuesday, with 11 birds and 34 pars overall. He played the par-5's the second-best of the Buffaloes at 4-under. He had a run of 24 straight holes of par or better in recording his first subpar career tournament. He tied for second among the 18 freshman that competed here, trailing only CSU's Ralf Kivi (206) and was tied Wyoming's Brody Leid.
Senior Tucker Clark finished with a 2-over 74 for an over 216 even-par effort, tying him for 45th. He had 13 birdies and 30 pars overall, with his best effort here a 3-under 69 in the second round.
"It's a really competitive roster from one through 10, and that showed itself again this week," Edwards noted about the team effort overall. "Ty had an outstanding tournament, he's a very explosive player, and had a great event this week. He's been playing really well and it was good to see him finish the way he did today after a bit of a rough start. Brandon keeps getting better and better, he struggled a little today, but was really fighting and it is awesome to see him and his game keep ascending. All in all, I saw good things from everyone, and with all on our roster finishing par or better – and in the top half of the field – shows the competitive nature and depth of our line-up."
The three-way tie for first included St. Mary's Aiden Lee and Texas-El Paso's Dylan Teeter, as the tie came about when Teeter bogeyed his last hole. Time permitted just one playoff hole, the par-4 18th, with Lee and Teeter making par after Biwer picked up after he would have made bogey. For the rankings, the win counts for all three, they essentially playoff for a trophy.
The Buffaloes have a short turnaround, as they will travel to Hockley, Texas to play in the Big 12 Match Play Championship next Monday through Wednesday (Oct. 7-9). Six players will make the trip and will alternate in and of matches, which all feature five-versus-five formats.
NOTES: The gusting winds that were prevalent most of Monday were negligible for the final round, which featured sunny skies though cooler temperatures that reached only the mid-60's … The six toughest holes for the final round were, in order, Nos. 5, 11, 14, 8, 9 and 6; the CSU scorers played them even, the Buffs at 1-over … The average score for all 312 rounds was 72.46; it held fairly steady across the three rounds (72.63, 72.30 and 72.44 Tuesday) … In the end, 44 players finished under par with eight ending with even 216's. CU, CSU and Utah had all five designated scorers finish in the red … The five Buff designated scorers had 65 birdies (second to CSU's 68) and 176 pars (third, behind Creighton, 179, and Denver 178). CU had the fewest holes worse than par with just 29 (28 bogeys, one double); CSU was next with 36 (33 bogeys, one double, triples) … Colorado played the par-4's the best in the field at 22-under (eight shots better than the others), the par-3's at 3-over (second-best, CSU was 2-under) and the par-5's at 16-under (eighth) … Biwer lowered his team-leading stroke average to 68.75; his career mark for 117 rounds of 71.01 stands atop CU's all-time list … After going 16-1 today, Colorado continues to be off to its best start in history against Division I competition, 57-4-1 (.927) through three events (147-35-5 in rounds); Colorado Mines is a Division II member … The 10th member of this year's team, Zeqian "Michael" Fang, a freshman from China, earned a berth to play in the Asia-Pacific Amateur that starts Wednesday in Gotemba, Japan; 120 amateurs from 40 countries are set to compete, with the medalist earning an exemption into the 2025 Masters.
NOTABLE RECORDS
- Colorado's previous best record through four tournaments against Division I competition was 52-7-1 in 2016 (also the same year after five events, 56-10-1).
- All five designated scorers were under par in both the first and second rounds, just the seventh time that has happened in school history, and the first time it occurred twice in the same tournament. Biwer and McDermott have been a part in four of those seven times. There have now been 22 times all five scored par or better in the same round.
- Biwer with his 13-under par effort, became the first player in CU history to be under par in two different tournaments four times; he previously was -8, -4 and -7 in the Simpson, and was in red numbers four times in New Mexico's Tucker Intercollegiate. McDermott joined him in playing the Simpson under par four times (-6 this year, and -3, -2, and -5 prior to this year). They join Ethan Freeman, who did it in Air Force's Miranda Invitational, as the only CU players to accomplish the rare feat.
- Biwer's ending this meet with a streak of 42 holes of par or better tied Hunter Swanson's record which he set last season.
- Biwer added to his CU-career best tournament under par count with his 24th; he now has 25 events at or under par, one shy of the school record 26 set by Jeremy Paul (2013-17). McDermott has 22 events under par and a 23rd that was even.
- Biwer, with two bogey free rounds here, has three on the season and five for his career, the latter two being school records (since 1994). He now has seven top 5 career finishes (tied for 10th all-time at CU) and 23 top 20 efforts (tied for seventh).
- CU's 27-under total through 36 holes was an all-time school best; the 549 gross score was the third-lowest in the record book.
- CU now has 10 subpar and one even-par team rounds out of 12 so far this season, by far the best at this point of any season in its history (the record is 25 during the 2017-18 season; the Buffs had just 12 last year).
- Rounds In The 60s: Biwer and McDermott both now have 39 rounds in the 60's, tied for second behind Jeremy Paul's 41.
- Subpar Rounds: Biwer tied Jeremy Paul for the most in CU history with 66. McDermott has 56, which is fourth.
- Rounds of Par or Better: Biwer added to his lead here and now has 83; McDermott is now second with 76, passing the Paul Twins in this meet as Jeremy had 74 and Yannik 73.
| BUFFALO INDIVIDUALS |
| T1. | Justin Biwer | 67-68-68—203 |
| T5. | *Ty Holbrook | 68-72-66—206 |
| T10. | Brandon Knight | 70-67-72—209 |
| T14. | Dylan McDermott | 69-69-72—210 |
| T18. | Freddy Eisenbeis | 70-70-71—211 |
| T28. | Hunter Swanson | 69-70-73—212 |
| T28. | *Jack Holland | 69-71-72—212 |
| T36. | *Parker Paxton | 73-69-72—214 |
| T45. | *Tucker Clark | 73-69-74—216 |
| INDIVIDUAL LEADERS |
| T1. | Justin Biwer, Colorado | 67-68-68—203 |
| T1.. | Aidan Lee, St. Mary's | 66-69-68—203 |
| T1. | Dylan Teeter, UTEP | 69-65-69—203 |
| 4. | Kristof Panke, Wyoming | 70-70-65—205 |
| T5. | Ty Holbrook, Colorado | 68-72-66—206 |
| T5. | Christof Bleier, Colorado State | 73-68-65—206 |
| T5. | Ralf Kivi, Colorado State | 70-67-69—206 |
| TEAM STANDINGS |
| 1. | Colorado State | 282-276-270—828 |
| 2. | COLORADO | 275-274-283—832 |
| 3. | St. Mary's | 268-286-279—833 |
| 4. | Wyoming | 278-281-276—835 |
| 5. | Texas-El Paso | 285-272-283—840 |
| 6. | Utah | 285-281-277—843 |
| 7. | Boise State | 287-278-281—846 |
| 8. | New Mexico State | 285-284-282—851 |
| 9. | Utah State | 285-289-282—856 |
| 10. | Denver | 289-285-285—859 |
| 11. | Tarleton State | 284-288-288—860 |
| 12. | Northern Colorado | 290-284-291—865 |
| T13. | Creighton | 289-289-291—869 |
| T13. | CSU Fullerton | 282-293-294—869 |
| 15. | Valparaiso | 294-286-295—875 |
| 16. | Air Force | 295-292-290—877 |
| 17. | Central Arkansas | 295-295-300—890 |
| 18. | Colorado Mines | 301-294-297—892 |
| 19. | Southern Utah | 308-304-299—911 |
Players Mentioned
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