The ASU men’s team ended its regular season finishing a disappointing seventh in the Western Intercollegiate on Sunday in Santa Cruz, Calif.
After a promising first round, in which ASU was tied for fourth and only one shot away from second, the team dropped out of contention with two very poor rounds of an 18-over-par 368 and a 16-over-par 366. The tournament gave the Sun Devils some momentum though as they finished ahead of three Pac-10 teams: No. 18 California, No. 19 Stanford and No. 29 Washington.
ASU will see the teams again in its next tournament, the Pac-10 Championships, which begin on April 29.
“We gained a little bit of confidence this week,” ASU coach Randy Lein said. “We have two weeks before it all counts and hopefully we can get it all together.”
Philip Francis, the only junior who competed for a team filled with seniors, finished tied for ninth, meaning ASU has had a player finish in the top 10 in every tournament this spring.
Francis seemed to enjoy his time in California. The tournament was his second top-10 finish in the state this spring.
Also finishing high was Scott Pinckney, who had carried the load for the team earlier this spring finishing in the top 10 four out of five times, placing tied for 15th on Sunday. ASU senior Jesper Kennegard was threatening for the individual title after a first round score of a 4-under-par 66 put him in third place, but he would finish tied for 25th after two rounds at 75 or above.
The course played very difficult. Even the winner, No. 3 UCLA, finished with a 16-over-par 1066 total and a 21-over-par 371 on the final day. The only teams to finish in single digits over par for the final round were Oregon and San Jose State, the event’s host.
Senior Oscar Zetterwall had the toughest time on day two for ASU, as he recorded an 11-over-par 81 after having a good first round that put him in the top 20. Ultimately, Zetterwall just couldn’t get it done on the green as he had nine three putts and two four putts in the 34 holes played on the first day. He ended up finishing tied for 64th.
“It’s the type of course where you might hit bad shots and end up good, or you hit good shots and you end up in a bad place,” Pinckney said.
Getting to play the course for three rounds was helpful in understanding the course, Pinckney said. It showed as Pinckney was one of only five players to shoot under par in his final round, recording a one-under-par 69.
“Sometimes I think maybe we are not as good as we are,” Lein said. “Then I see shots and scores that show we could be as good as I think we are.”
Reach the reporter at jjmckelv@asu.edu
