With the postseason steadily approaching, the ASU men’s golf team got a tune-up for the NCAA Championships at the Callaway Collegiate Match Play Championships at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club in Marana this week.
This season will mark the second straight year the national championship tournament — which begins June 1 in Chattanooga, Tenn. — will be conducted in match play format, which features members of a team squaring off one-on-one against opponents from another team in order to earn points.
The No. 9 Sun Devils lost their first two matches of the tournament, 3 and 2 to Iowa and 4 and 1 to No. 11 UCLA, before winning their final two matches, 3 and 2 over Texas Christian and a 3 and 2 victory over No. 2-seed Washington.
ASU finished 13th in the 16-team field.
A positive sign for the Sun Devils was the play of junior James Byrne. The Scotland native won all four of his matches, including a 5 and 0 win over Washington’s Chris Killmer on Tuesday.
ASU will next be in action when it hosts the Thunderbird Invitational at Karsten Golf Course. The Sun Devils have won the event seven of the past 11 seasons, including last year’s tournament.
Reach the reporter at nkosmide@asu.edu
