Golfers Rebound, Upend No. 14 Texas Tech In Big 12 Match Play

Tuesday, October 8

Hockley, Texas

All Day

Colorado

3.5

1.5

Texas Tech

All images copright to ©Juan DeLeon Creative

Brandon Knight's 35-foot eagle putt helped propel CU to the victory.

Photo by: ©Juan DeLeon Creative

Golfers Rebound, Upend No. 14 Texas Tech In Big 12 Match Play

October 08, 2024 | Men's Golf

Colorado Posts Convincing Win Over Talented Red Raider Squad

By: David Plati, SID-Emeritus/Athletic Historian

               HOCKLEY, Texas — As disappointing as the first day of the Big 12 Match Play Championship for the University of Colorado men's golf team was on Monday, the Buffaloes rebounded to knock off No. 14 Texas Tech, 3½-1½ here in Tuesday's final round of pool play.

               All three of the matches involving CU have been among the most competitive, and Tuesday's was no different. There were several lead changes throughout the day, and in the end, it came down to three matches decided on the final hole, with the teams tied at one win apiece.

            "This was a really good win today against Texas Tech," CU head coach Roy Edwards said. "The match was back-and-forth all day long and we closed it out strong to get the victory. We are looking forward to tomorrow's final match and hopefully we can have five healthy guys to play."

            His latter comment was about a stomach bug that has made its way through the team; junior Hunter Swanson hasn't been able to play the first two days, but is expected to play Wednesday, but senior Dylan McDermott was hit hard by it Tuesday and will be out. It no doubt played a role in his losing his match (5 & 3) to Tech's Connor Graham, who is ranked six spots ahead of him in the latest World Amateur Golf Rankings (111th and 117th, respectively).

            Senior Justin Biwer closed out his match early, besting Charles DeLong, 3 & 2, a mild upset with the Red Raider 26 spots ahead of him in the WAGR (149, 175). Biwer never trailed in the match on the 7,007-yard, par-71 Houston Oaks Country Club course; they tied eight of the first 11 holes before he took command of things with birdies on three of their next four holes (Nos. 3 through 6).

            With Biwer's win tying the match, it came down to the remaining three matches that all went down to the wire, and with a shotgun start, all ended practically simultaneously within a minute or two of each other. And according to those WAGR rankings, the three Red Raiders were heavily favored in them.

            Sophomore Brandon Knight won his match over Sean Keeling with a 35-foot eagle putt on the 521-yard, par-5 11th; he had trailed most of the way by either one or two holes, but pulled even when he made par on No. 7; he dropped down by one again after a bogey on No. 9, but came right back with a birdie on No.10 to tie it once again, making for his dramatic win with the eagle on 11. Keeling is ranked 245th in the world, a full 800 spots ahead of Knight.

            At that point, with senior Freddy Eisenbeis up by one with just his last hole to play, CU was guaranteed no worse than a tie. He was playing No. 12 when sophomore Ty Holbrook, who was in the foursome with Knight, nailed a 6-foot putt for birdie on 11 that halved his match with Calum Scott, the 17th-ranked amateur in the world. That sealed the win for the Buffs, and a minute or two later, Eisenbeis made par to account for the final margin as he defeated Tim Wiedemeyer, 2 up.

            (Eisenbeis is ranked 1,450th, up over 1,200 spots since August when he started playing his best golf; Wiedemeyer was 44th. Holbrook has yet to crack the rankings as he hasn't played in enough sanctioned events yet.)

               The event wraps up on Wednesday with the final seven matches. Colorado will square off against West Virginia in a shotgun start at 6:45 a.m. MDT. BYU and Baylor will play for the championship.

NOTES: Sunny skies prevailed again Tuesday, though the temperature and humidity were in the 80s most of the day … With just 15 of the league's 16 teams here this week – Arizona had a previous commitment – CU's was the odd team out for a cross-pool match Tuesday afternoon (CU's Pool D squared off against Pool A, which had the just three teams); it was just the way complex point system determined things … There are currently 4,875 players ranked by WAGR … Baylor, which edged the Buffs late in Monday's second round (3-2), upset the No. 2 team in the nation and the No. 1 seed here, Arizona State, to earn its way into the title match … Of CU's 15 matches here, 13 were decided on the 18th and final hole … Overall, the five Buffs have won 67 holes and tied 118, dropping 76 (that's a win-tie percent of 71 percent; Eisenbeis has won the most holes here with 16, followed by Holbrook with 15 and Knight 14).

Colorado def. Texas Tech, 3½-1½
Connor Graham (TTU) def. Dylan McDermott, 5 & 3
Justin Biwer (CU) def. Charles DeLong, 3 & 2
Ty Holbrook (CU) tied Calum Scott
Brandon Knight (CU) def. Sean Keeling, 1 up
Freddy Eisenbeis (CU) def. Tim Wiedemeyer, 2 up

Big 12 Match Play Championship Results

Round Three
No. 1 Arizona State (1-0-1) tied No. 8 Iowa State (1-0-1), 2½-2½
No. 7 Kansas (2-0-1) def. No. 2 Oklahoma State (1-1-1), 3-2
No. 6 BYU (3-0) def. No. 3 Utah (1-1-1), 3 ½-1½
No. 5 Colorado (1-2) def. No. 4 Texas Tech (2-1), 3 ½-1½
No. 10 Kansas State (1-1-1) def. No. 15 UCF (0-2-1), 3 ½-1½
No. 11 Houston (1-2) def. No. 14 West Virginia (0-2-1), 3 ½-1½
No. 13 Baylor (2-1) def. No. 12 TCU (1-2), 3 ½-1½
No. 9 Cincinnati (0-2) idle

Cross-Pool Round
No. 3 Utah (1-1-2) tied No. 2 Oklahoma State (1-1-2), 2½-2½
No. 4 Texas Tech (3-1) def. No. 9 Cincinnati (0-3), 3-2
No. 6 BYU (4-0) def. No. 7 Kansas (2-1-1), 3½-1½
No. 8 Iowa State (2-0-1) def. No. 12 TCU (1-3), 3-2
No. 10 Kansas State (2-1-1) def. No. 11 Houston (1-3), 3-2
No. 13 Baylor (3-1) def. No. 1 Arizona State (1-1-1), 3-2
No. 14 West Virginia (1-2-1) def. No. 15 UCF (0-3-1), 3-2
No. 5 Colorado (1-2) idle

Final Match Schedule (Wednesday a.m.)
No. 6 BYU (4-0) vs. No. 13 Baylor (3-1) Championship Match
No. 5 Colorado (1-2) vs. No. 14 West Virginia (1-2-1)
No. 1 Arizona State (1-1-1) vs. No. 7 Kansas (2-1-1)
No. 2 Oklahoma State (1-1-2) vs. No. 4 Texas Tech (3-1)
No. 3 Utah (1-1-2) vs. No. 9 Cincinnati (0-3)
No. 8 Iowa State (2-0-1) vs. No. 10 Kansas State (2-1-1)
No. 11 Houston (1-3) vs. No. 12 TCU (1-3)
No. 15 UCF (0-3-1) idle