Sides ties for medalist, Cowboys fifth at Pauma Valley Invitational
PAUMA VALLEY, Calif. (SMU) – Tulsan Will Sides won a share of the individual title at the Pauma Valley Invitational, his third collegiate win. As a team the Mustangs finished in eighth. Defending NCAA champion Oklahoma State started and ended the final round in fifth place.
Sides came into the final day tied for the lead with Lance Simpson of Tennessee. Sides shot his third 2-under or better round to give himself an opportunity to win. The senior finished with a score of 10-under par, a tournament record, with a bogey free round and waited for Simpson to finish. With Simpson playing the final four holes even par, Sides earned a share of the title ahead of 37 nationally ranked golfers. The win marked Sides’ third career victory after consecutive titles at the Stephens Cup in the fall of 2024 and 2025. The Tulsa native has his season scoring average down to 70.30, second best in a season at SMU behind Noah Goodwin’s 70.00 in 2020-21.
As a team, the Mustangs were up against a field of 11 top 50 teams including nine top 20 teams. They came into the day in eighth place and maintained that standing by the end of the day. The Mustangs finished one shot out of sixth place at five under par.
Oklahoma State closed play with a 280 to finish in sole possession of fifth place.
The Cowboys finished with a 54-hole total of 8-under 844 to come in five shots off the pace of LSU and Florida for third place. Tennessee and Georgia Tech shared top honors, posting matching 836 totals at the par-71, 7,311-yard layout.
OSU’s Preston Stout was two shots shy of joining Sides and Simpson and logging his second consecutive victory. The junior posted a closing 69 to finish at 205 and alone in third place..
Stout posted his first birdie of the day at the second before eventually making the turn at 2-over 38. He would go on to birdie three of the first four holes on his inward nine before carding his lone bogey of the second nine at the 15th. He would wrap up his day with birdies at the 16th and 18th.
Junior Ethan Fang posted his second consecutive 71 to finish at 211 and tied for 16th place.
Sophomore Filip Fahlberg-Johnsson rose eight spots into a tie for 29th place at 213 after signing for his low round of the event, a 1-under 70.
Redshirt freshman Collin Bond, who competed individually, also carded a 70 to finish tied for 48th place at 216.
Junior Gaven Lane tied for 60h place after posting a 60 for a 218 total, while junior Eric Lee carded a 74 to share 65th place at 219.
Top 10 Team Scores
T1. Tennessee—273-284-279=836
T1. Georgia Tech—280-278-278=836
T3. LSU—283-279-277=839
T3. Florida—285-274-280=839
5. Oklahoma State—279-285-280=844
T6. Virginia—287-285-274=846
T6. Illinois—287-277-282=846
8. SMU—281-285-281=847
9. Ole Miss—276-289-288=853
10. Texas Tech—283-285-287=855
Individual Scores
T1. Lance Simpson, Tennessee—66-68-69=203
T1. William Sides, SMU—67-67-69=203
3. Preston Stout, OSU—65-71-69=205
T16. Ethan Fang, OSU—69-71-71=211
T29. Filip Fahlberg-Johnsson, OSU—71-72-70=213
T48. Collin Bond, OSU*—73-73-70=216
T60. Gaven Lane, OSU—74-74-70=218
T65 . Eric Lee, OSU—74-71-74=219