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PALO ALTO, Calif. – California (276-270-269–815, -25) will be going to the NCAA Championship for a school-record-tying third consecutive season after winning the Stanford Regional on Saturday at the par-70, 6,727-yard Stanford Golf Course. The victory was Cal's first NCAA Regional win and sixth in 13 events this season to add to a school record total. Cal had three players — Brandon Hagy (67-66-66-199, -11), Michael Kim (67-64-69–200, -10) and Max Homa (71-68-67–206, -4) — finish in the top 10 to lead the way.

San Diego State (282-265-274–821, -19), Alabama-Birmingham (278-274-278–830, -10), Stanford (277-275-280–832, -8) and Central Florida (278-279-278–835, -5) will be the four other teams from the Stanford Regional heading to the NCAA Championship. Pepperdine's Josh Anderson (67-65-64–196, -14) won individual medalist honors and will also advance to the NCAAs. Anderson's six-under par round on Saturday was the best of the day.

Hagy's third-place solo finish was the highest of his career and his second consecutive four-under par round of 66 on Saturday included a stretch of four birdies in a row. Hagy opened his round with a birdie on the par-five first hole before a bogey on the par-four second. After a bogey on the par-four sixth, he went on a tear with the four consecutive birdies. The hot streak started on the par-five seventh before continuing on the par-three eighth, and par-four ninth and 10th holes. He would then make seven pars in a row before his sixth and final birdie of the round on the par-four 18th.

Kim ended up tying for fourth after having led the tournament entering the final round. He followed his collegiate best six-under par 64 on Friday with a one-under par round of 69 on Saturday. Kim never went lower than one-under on the day during an effort that included 13 pars, three birdies and two bogeys. He birdied the first hole but gave the stroke back with a bogey on the par-three third. He went back into the red with a birdie on the par-four fifth and stayed there with nine consecutive pars before a bogey on the par-four 15th. His birdie on the par-five 16th put him back in the red.

Homa and Joël Stalter also came up huge for the Bears on Saturday.

Homa moved up 14 spots into a 10th place tie after a three-under par round of 67 that was his best of the tournament. Homa had three birdies over his first five holes on the first, par-three fourth and fifth to get to three-under in a hurry. He would stay there with two more birdies and two bogeys over his final 13 holes. His fourth and fifth birdies of the round came on the seventh and 15 holes, while his bogeys were on the sixth and 10th.

Stalter (72-72-67–211, +1) jumped up 24 spots into a tie for 27th and matched Homa's three-under par round of 67. He started off on fire with a par of birdies on the first two holes. He bogeyed the third but subsequent birdies on the seventh, par-four 11th and par-three 14th got him to four-under for the day before he bogeyed the 15th.

Pace Johnson (71-77-72 – 220) was the other Cal player to participate in the event and inched up four spots on the day into a tie for 62nd in the final standings. Johnson's two-over par round on Saturday included three birdies (1, 7, 16) and five bogeys (6, 9, 10, 13, 18).

Tags: Alabama Birmingham, Birdie, Birdies, Bogey, Central Florida, Consecutive Season, Eff, First Hole, Hagy, Homa, Hot Streak, Josh Anderson, Medalist Honors, Michael Kim, Ncaa Championship, Ncaas, Palo Alto, Pars, Pepperdine, Stanford Golf Course// Category All Things Golf // Add Comment »

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — Stephan Jaeger and Chattanooga swept the individual and team crowns at the Bowling Green Regional on Saturday to win the first NCAA postseason titles in program history.

Jaeger was fantastic from start-to-finish in firing a career-best 203, 13-under par. His first two cards of 70 and 65 were followed by a six-under par 66 in the final round to win by four shots against UCLA's Pedro Figueiredo.

His 66 paced UTC to a four-under 284, the low round of the day. It gave the Mocs (859) a one-shot win against Texas A&M (860) and four shots ahead of UCLA (863), which led the first two days. Virginia Tech (874) and Memphis (876) rounded out the top five which are the schools that advance to the NCAA Championship.

It wasn't easy. The Aggies surged early, while the Bruins roared back in the middle of the round. The three schools were tied at two-under shortly after the teams completed the turn at hole No. 9.

As Jaeger went back-to-back with birdies on 11 and 12, Steven Fox did the same at 13 and 14. As Fox's birdie dropped on 14, news circulated that Davis Bunn tallied a hole-in one on the difficult par-three 16th. He sunk an eight iron from 189 yards out for the ace.

Liam Johnston and Chris Robb took over from there. Johnston birdied 17 and ended his day at one-over par 73. Robb birdied three of the last four holes to tie Bunn in the house at 74.

That gave the Mocs a three-shot cushion which was key because the Aggies were not going away. Tyler Dunlap posted birdies on 15 and 16 which coupled with Jaeger's bogey on 16, pulled Texas A&M even with two groups on the course.

Jaeger scored a reversal on the 17th, however. His chip in birdie and Dunlap's bogey put Chattanooga back up by two.

Fox's tee shot on 18 went right and his unplayable lie in the high grass added to the suspense. But the junior made bogey to keep the Mocs in front by one. It came down to Jaeger and Dunlap. Jaeger was just off the front of the green in two on the par five, while Dunlap was well to the right in the deep rough.

Dunlap's chip put him in business for birdie, while Jaeger chipped up to around six feet from the hole. Dunlap rolled in his nine-footer for his four turning the drama over to Jaeger. He lived up to his status as the top-ranked player in the field nailing the putt for the one-stroke team win.

Fox finished tied for third at 211. His course record 64 the previous day still had the assembled throng of locals and school fans buzzing. Robb tied for 26th at 222, while Johnston was two shots back at 224. Bunn ended up with a total of 233.

Tags: Aggies, Birdie, Birdies, Bogey, Bowling Green Ky, Bruins, Chattanooga, Chris Robb, Davis Bunn, Dunlap, Four Holes, High Grass, Hole In One, Mocs, Ncaa Championship, Ncaa Postseason, Program History, Steven Fox, Unplayable Lie, Virginia Tech// Category All Things Golf // Add Comment »

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Liberty withstood a fierce charge from Florida, fending off the Gators with four birdies on No. 18 to capture the team title at the Greensboro Regional on Saturday afternoon on the East Course at the Grandover Resort.

With the victory, Liberty along with Florida, Auburn, Lamar and Tulsa will be making a West Coast trip in 10 days.

The top five teams at each of the six NCAA Regionals sites around the country earned the right to compete at the 2012 NCAA Championship, May 29 – June 3, at the Riviera Country Club in in Pacific Palisades, Calif.

For the Flames, it marked their third consecutive team victory and the team's ninth round in a row where it finished as the clubhouse leader. In April, Liberty won the River Landing Intercollegiate on April 6-7 before capturing its second consecutive Big South Championship at The Patriot Golf Club on April 16-18.

Liberty finished atop the 14-team leaderboard with a four-over par 868 (283-293-292), three shots clear of Florida, who finished second with a seven-over par 871 (299-287-285).

Auburn took third place with a 10-over par 874 (296-292-286), followed by Lamar's 13-over par 877 (295-293-289) and Tulsa's 14-over par 878 (293-297-288).

The odd team out of the nationals mix was local favorite Duke, with the Blue Devils finishing in sixth place with a 17-over par 881 (301-291-289).

SMU had one of the most dramatic falls of the day down the leaderboard. The Mustangs came into the day in second place, six strokes behind Liberty, but carded a 13-over par 301 on Saturday to fall to seventh place with a 19-over par 883 (288-294-301).

Liberty becomes the first Big South men's golf team to win an NCAA Regional event and the fourth to advance to the NCAA Championship. Coastal Carolina has made three trips to the national championship event (2005, 2006 and 2007), spotlighted by its fifth-place finish in 2006.

Liberty's Robert Karlsson finished the 54-hole event in a three-way tie for first place with SMU's Matt Schovee and Campbell's Viata Guillaume.

Schovee and Guillaume went on to play a playoff to determine who would advance to the NCAA Men's Golf National Championship as an individual.

The top scoring individual not on one of the five teams heading to nationals qualified as an individual. Karlsson did not compete in the playoff, as he had already secured his tee time at Riviera by leading Liberty to the regional team title.

Guillaume went on to defeat Schovee on the first playoff hole. Guillaume parred the long par 4 No. 10 hole, while Schovee would post bogey. Schovee was the 36-hole individual leader on the day, but closed the championship with a four-over par 76 on the final day to allow Guillaume and Karlsson back into the individual title mix.

Karlsson finished in a three-way tie with Guillaume and Schovee, posting a three-under par 213 (70-69-74), marking his first career sub-par NCAA Regional finish in four regional showings.

Chase Marinell shared seventh place with an one-over par 217 (70-74-73), while Niklas Lindstrom finished tied for 13th place with a three-over par 219 (72-74-73).

Mathieu Fenasse finished tied for 39th place with a 10-over par 226 (71-78-77) and Ian McConnell continued to improve and posted Liberty's lowest final round to climb to a share of 44th place with an 11-over par 227 (79-76-72).

For the third consecutive day, the front nine continued to be more difficult for Karlsson than the back. The senior came into the day one-under on the front nine and four-under on the final nine holes and without a bogey on the back side.

Karlsson dropped a shot early, as the senior was unable to get up and down from the left side of the green at No. 1, carding his first of three front side bogeys.

Five consecutive pars were highlighted by a strong recovery on the par 5 No. 6 hole. The two-time Big South Golfer of the Year lost a ball right off the tee, but still managed to make par after a solid second drive and a hybrid to within eight feet.

Another errant tee shot on the downhill par 3 No. 7 hole cost Karlsson his second stroke. His iron found the left bunker, and he was unable to get close after his ball found the downslope of the sand.

Karlsson tried to scramble and close with par on the uphill par 4 No. 9 hole, but a drive left and an approach short and right forced the senior to make the turn at three-over par on the day.

Another solid hybrid shot on No. 10 seemed to calm Karlsson down, as the shot to within 12 feet, which he would two putt for par, began a string of eight pars in a row.

The only time the run of pars was in jeopardy was on the short par 3 No. 12 hole, a hole Karlsson had birdied the previous two days.

However, the back pin placement on the three-tiered green gave him some challenges. After being long and left, Karlsson made an aggressive run at holing out. His chip up caught the edge of the cup, which slowed the pace of the ball down just enough to remain on the top tier of the green and allowed him to sink the six foot comeback putt for par.

Coming to the home hole, a 570-yard par 5, live scoring had the Flames up by one shot over the Gators, encouraging Karlsson to give the No. 18 green a shot in two to help the team's chances at the team title.

Once again, he found the sweet spot of his hybrid, clearing the water that jutted out in front of the hole and he ran his approach through the two-tiered green. The senior completed his first under par hole of the day after his chip up ran down the slope to within four feet of the hole.

On the day, Karlsson finished by hitting 6-of-14 fairways and 9-of-18 greens in regulation to go along with 29 total putts.

Karlsson dramatic birdie on No. 18 completed a run of four consecutive under par scores for the Flames on the last hole to seal the team victory. Joining Karlsson in making an under par on the home hole were Marinell, Lindstrom and McConnell.

After following Karlsson with a bogey on No. 1, Marinell was able to grind out a one-over par 73 on the day. The sophomore quickly regained the stroke with a birdie on the par 5 No. 2, but gave it back with over par scores on No. 5 and 10, both par fours. He carded seven pars in a row before closing with a birdie on No. 18.

McConnell was Liberty's low golfer on the day, saving his best round of the championship event for Saturday. He opened with a birdie on No. 1, snaking in a 35-foot putt to jumpstart his round.

He sandwiched birdies on No. 4 and 6 with a bogey on No. 5 to make the turn at two-under par. His score remained the same until he bogeyed holes No. 12, 13 and 15 to go back to one-over par on the day. His birdie on No. 18 began Liberty's closing run.

Lindstrom opened his day with a pair of pars before dropping shots at No. 3 and 4. He got one back with a birdie on No. 6, but followed with a bogey on No. 7 to make the turn at two-over par on the day.

He birdied No. 11 and posted a bogey on No. 14 before closing his day with a birdie on No. 18, a hole he played at three-under par during the regional event.

Much like the rest of his teammates, Fenasse struggled out of the gates, posting bogeys on No. 1 and 3. After carding seven pars in a row, the freshman cut his deficit in half with a birdie on No. 11. However, during his closing six holes, he carded three bogeys, a double bogey and a birdie to finish at five-over par for the day.

Tags: Birdies, Blue Devils, Coastal Carolina, Gators, Golf Team, Grandover Resort, Lamar, National Championship, Ncaa Championship, Ncaa Regionals, Pacific Palisades, Regional Event, Riviera Country Club, Saturday Afternoon, Smu, South Men, Team Leaderboard, Team Victory, Three Shots, West Coast Trip// Category All Things Golf // Add Comment »

GLADSTONE, N.J. — Winning the Sybase Match Play Championship would be quite an early birthday present for Morgan Pressel, who turns 24 next Wednesday. Given the recent arc of her career, though, just making it…

Tags: Arc, Birthday Present, First Victory, Gladstone, Match Play Championship, Morgan Pressel// Category All Things Golf // Add Comment »

GLADSTONE, N.J. — Winning the Sybase Match Play Championship would be quite an early birthday present for Morgan Pressel, who turns 24 next Wednesday. Given the recent arc of her career, though, just making it to Sunday morning’s semifinals is a well-earned gift in itself.

Pressel’s best finish in 2012 was a T-20 at the Kia Classic. She is looking for her first victory since 2008. After a rousing comeback victory over No. 2 seed Na Yeon Choi Saturday morning, Pressel defeated Anna Nordqvist 5 and 4 Saturday afternoon. For Pressel, who will face 24-year-old Azahara Munoz of Spain on Sunday, this week has been a big step forward. (Candie Kung and Vicky Hurst will square off in the other semifinal.)

“No matter what happens, this is the best I’ve played in a long time,” Pressel said. “I finally feel comfortable with my game again to a point where I haven’t been in a while. I’m going to give it everything I have tomorrow. But I just have a lot of confidence going into the heart of the season.”

Pressel has been working recently with instructor Ron Stockton, previously her short-game coach, on all parts of her game. She is trying to recapture some of the magic that made her the youngest winner (18 years, 10 months, 9 days) of an LPGA major championship at the 2007 Kraft Nabsico.

“Certainly people put expectations on me — the media, the fans, my sponsors, everybody wants me to play well,” Pressel said. “Having won the Kraft so young, I’m never going to say it was a bad thing. I mean, I’m a major champion, the youngest in LPGA history. I probably more than anybody else put extra pressure on myself to really be a world-beater, and I don’t think I was quite ready for that and don’t think I was quite mature enough for that.”

– Bill Fields

Tags: 10 Months, 18 Years, Arc, Birthday Present, Champion, Comeback Victory, Confidence, Extra Pressure, First Victory, Gladstone, Kia, Match Play Championship, Morgan Pressel, Nabsico, Nordqvist, Saturday Afternoon, Saturday Morning, Short Game, Sunday Morning, Vicky Hurst// Category All Things Golf // Add Comment »