Men's Golf Advances To NCAA Championship Tournament
The San Diego State University men's golf team, by virtue of its ninth-place finish in the NCAA West Regional, is heading to the NCAA Championship for the first time since 1999. The tournament will be held at the Karsten Creek Course in Stillwater, Okla. The event will take place May 27-30.
The Course
The championship will be contested at Karsten Creek Golf Club. Karsten Creek was recently named as the best college course in the country. It hosted the NCAA Central Regional last year and serves as the home course for nine-time national champion Oklahoma State. The layout covers 7,301 yards (par 72).
Storyline
San Diego State fought through adverse weather conditions and a 302 in the first round to finish ninth in the NCAA West Regional and advance to Stillwater. The ninth-place tie with Oregon marked SDSU's best performance in a regional since the 1999 team shot 875 to finish fifth in the West regional. The Aztecs shot a 292 and a 291 in the final two rounds to earn the trip to Stillwater.
The Week
Following practice rounds on Sunday and Monday, the tournament will get underway on Tuesday. There is no cut so all 30 teams will play all four rounds, concluding on Friday (May 30th).
Back To The Big One
San Diego State is back in the national-championship tournament for the first time since the 1999 season and for the first time ever under third-year head coach Dale Walker.
NCAA History
The 2003 NCAA Tournament will be the 23rd for the Aztecs, including their one appearance at the "small college" level. The Aztecs were the small-college runner-up in 1964. As a Division I program, San Diego State's 12th-place finish in 1978 is its best ever.
Program Resurrection
The Aztecs are in the field for the first time since 1999, when SDSU failed to make the cut. The Aztecs had made 11 straight appearances in the NCAA Championship through the 1984 season when a Dennis Paulson-led Aztec squad finished 24th in the field. After being dropped and reinstated, SDSU returned to the championship in 1999. SDSU has missed the cut in its last two NCAA Championship appearances.
The Field
San Diego State will of course face the toughest competition of the season in its quest for a national champion. Advancing to the national championship (from the East regional) are Clemson, Georgia Tech, Florida, Tennessee, Duke, Wake Forest, Augusta State, South Carolina, Vanderbilt and Auburn. Also in attendance (from the Central) will be host Oklahoma State, Illinois, North Carolina State, North Carolina, Texas, Kentucky, SMU, defending national champ Minnesota, Arkansas and Wichita State. Representing the West regional are UCLA, Arizona, UNLV, Georgia, Arizona State, New Mexico, Washington, USC, Oregon and San Diego State.
Aztecs Against The World
San Diego State has gone head-to-head with 18 of the 29 schools it will face in the championship tournament. The Aztecs came out of the events with a 14-33-2 mark, including the results of the West regional last weekend in Auburn, Wash.
Regional Recap
One year after missing an NCAA Championship spot by losing a one-hole playoff to Texas Tech, San Diego State overcame an opening-round 302 to finish in a ninth-place tie with Oregon and earn a return trip to the NCAA Championship. SDSU just missed national-championship tournament spots each of the past two seasons after finishing 12th and 10th respectively. The 2003 regional was plagued by frost, high winds and thunderstorms. SDSU's 885 was just six shots out of the fifth-place finish posted by Arizona State.
Season In Review
San Diego State's evolution into a western golf power took another step during the 2002-2003 season. The Aztecs qualified for the NCAA regional appearance for the fifth straight season and for the sixth time in seven years. The Aztecs advanced to the NCAA Championship for the second in four years. Overall, SDSU has participated in 13 tournaments and recorded 11 finishes in the top 10 and six top five finishes. The Aztecs won the Barona Collegiate Cup it hosted in San Diego and finished second in the Mountain West for the second time in three seasons. The Aztecs also earned a runner-up finished in the John Burns Intercollegiate in Hawaii and finished third in the U.S. Intercollegiate hosted by Stanford and third in Texas A&M's Border Olympics.
Mountain Men
San Diego State is one of three Mountain West schools to advance to the NCAA Championship. Joining the Aztecs in Stillwater will be UNLV and Mountain West tournament champion New Mexico.
Mountain View
San Diego State is coming off a solid if not spectacular effort in the Mountain West tournament. The Aztecs ended the tournament with an even-par team score of 864. The score was good enough for second place (tie with BYU), nine shots behind first-time champion New Mexico. SDSU's highest individual finish was Lars Johansson at fourth. He set a Mountain West Championship tournament record with a 67 in the opening round and finished play with a four-under 212.
The "All" Guys
Two Aztecs were named to the 2003 all- Mountain West Conference team, announced during the final round of the league tournament. Lars Johansson was named to the all-league team for the second time after he was named league player of the year as a sophomore. He is also an all-Mountain West academic selection. Mark Warman was also selected to the team. It marked the third straight season that Warman was named to the all-league team.
The Champions
Three Aztecs picked up five individual titles during the 2002-2003 school year, including Mark Warman in the U.S. Intercollegiate, Lars Johansson in the John Burns Intercollegiate and John Lepak in the Barona Collegiate Cup. Also earning medalist honors were Andrew Scott in the Southern California Intercollegiate and Gilberto Rodriguez at the Wyoming Cowboy Classic.
Who's On First
Categorizing the Aztecs may not be the easiest chore this week. Four different players have been SDSU's top finisher in each of the last four events in which the team has played. Every member of the starting five has at least one top five finish and all five have shot in the 60s during the spring semester.
The Deep End Of The Course
SDSU may boast the deepest team in the country. All 10 players on the Aztec roster who competed this season now possess at least one top-five finish this season, and SDSU individuals hold 39 top-20s in 16 total events (including five in which the JV team competed). In another testament to the squad's depth, three of the five Aztecs who have won medallist honors this year are not in the postseason line.
Eleven Tens
San Diego State will enter the NCAA Championship have placed in the top 10 in 11 tournaments since August. SDSU won the Barona Collegiate Cup and finished second in the Mountain West Tournament (UNLV was champ) and the John Burns Intercollegiate in Hawaii. Third-place finishes by SDU included the U.S.Intercollegiate where SDSU finished behind champion UCLA and one stroke behind Oklahoma State. At Texas A&M's Border Olympics the Aztes were third, just two shots behind Texas A&M and Arkansas.
Individual Notes
o Mark Warman claimed SDSU's most impressive individual title of the season, winning the 90-golfer individual field in the U.S. Intercollegiate. He defeated 31 of the nation's top 250-rated golfers according to Golfweek, 11 of them rated among the top 100 including No. 2 Hunter Mahan of Oklahoma State. Included in Warman's title was a second-round 62.
o Brian Miller has an average of 72.00 over his last five rounds since shooting an 81 to open Mountain West play.
o Lars Johansson set an opening-round record with his 67 in the Mountain West Tournament.
