Sooners, Cowboys ready for NCAA Championship runs at Rich Harvest Farms
Cowboys Head To Illinois In Pursuit of No. 11
Oklahoma State will pursue its 11th NCAA title when play gets underway this week at the NCAA Championship at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Ill. The event will run May 26-May 31 and will consist of 72 holes of stroke play to determine the eight teams for the match play portion of the tournament as well as the individual champion.
OSU will serve as the event’s No. 2 see and will be grouped with top-seeded Southern California and No. 3 seed Vanderbilt for its first round. The trio will begin play on Friday at 12:05 p.m. on the 10th tee and their second round will get underway at 6:45 a.m. on Saturday on the No. 1 tee. After Sunday’s third round, the 30-team field will be trimmed to the top 15 squads and top nine individuals not on an advancing team for Monday’s fourth round. The top eight teams will then be placed into a match play bracket to determine the team champion.
The quarterfinal and semifinal matches will take place on Tuesday and will be followed by Wednesday’s championship match at the par-72, 7,300-yard layout.
The Cowboy lineup will feature the same five players responsible for their two-shot victory at the NCAA Austin Regional on May 17. OSU’s lineup will consist of senior Zachary Olsen, junior Kristoffer Ventura, sophomores Zach Bauchou and Hayden Wood as well as freshman Viktor Hovland.
Live scoring will be available at golfstat.com. Golf Channel will televise the action on Monday (3-7 p.m. CST), Tuesday (10 a.m.-12:30 p.m. and 3-7 p.m.) and Wednesday (3-7 p.m.).
OSU In NCAA Play
OSU has won 10 NCAA titles and has produced eight individual national champions. The Cowboys last national title came in 2006 under the direction of Mike McGraw. That same year also resulted in OSU’s most recent medalist at the event in Jonathan Moore. OSU’s first NCAA crown came in 1963 under the guidance of Labron Harris. Former coach and current OSU athletics director Mike Holder captured eight titles, winning in 1976, 1978, 1980, 1983, 1987, 1991, 1995 and 2000.
Additionally, the Cowboys have produced 17 runner-up finishes after placing second in 2014 at Prairie Dunes Country Club.
Earl Moeller was OSU’s first individual champion in 1953 and was followed by Grier Jones in 1968. David Edwards won in 1978 and was followed by Scott Verplank, Brian Watts an E.J. Pfister, who won consecutively from 1986-88. Charles Howell won in record-setting fashion in 2000 and was the program’s seventh national champion. Jonathan Moore’s individual title came in 2006.
NCAA Rewind … 2016 NCAA Championship
Oklahoma State’s men’s golf team posted an 11-over 291 during its fourth round at the NCAA Championship to tie for 10th place at Eugene Country Club.
The Cowboys finished with a 30-over total of 1,150 at the par-70, 7,014-yard to tie California and miss advancing to the match play bracket by six shots. Texas finished first at 1,134 after finishing with a 287. The Longhorns were followed by Illinois, LSU and Southern California. Vanderbilt, Oregon, South Carolina and Oklahoma rounded out the eight squads advancing to match play.
Oregon’s Aaron Wise closed with a 71 during his fourth round to finish at 5-under 275 and wrap up medalist honors.
Senior Jordan Niebrugge closed out his Cowboy career with his second consecutive 69 to move into a tie for 17th place at 285. Niebrugge went out in 1-under 33 with eight consecutive pars before wrapping up his outward nine with a birdie at the 18th. He moved to 3-under for the day with birdies at Nos. 2 and 4 before carding a double bogey at the seventh. After posting his fourth birdie of the day at the eighth, he finished with a bogey at the ninth for his 1-under total.
Sophomore Stratton Nolen signed for a 73 to finish tied for 26th place at 287, while classmate Kristoffer Ventura carded a 76 to finish at 291 and tied for 51st place. Sophomore Brendon Jelley posted his second 73 in a row to finish at 293 and tied for 60th place. Sophomore Sam Stevens‘ 79 tied him for 66th place at 294.
Tap-Ins
• OSU finished sixth at the 2007 NCAA Central Regional at Rich Harvest Farms.
• The Cowboys have now competed at the NCAA Championship in 70 of the program’s 71 years, including an NCAA-record string of 65 consecutive appearances from 1947-2011.
• After their runner-up finish in 2014, the Cowboys have finished first or second at the event 27 times (10 titles, 17 second-place showings) and have finished in the top five 52 times in 70 NCAA appearances. The Pokes have finished third on four occasions, fourth, 12 times and have been the fifth-place finisher nine times.
• Since the current format was implemented in 2009, OSU has advanced to match play four times, posting a 5-4 record. The Cowboys finished second in 2010 and 2014, tied for third in 2011 and tied for fifth in 2009.
Sooners look to peak at right time
The Oklahoma men’s golf team will vie for a national title this weekend at the 2017 NCAA Championships, held May 26-31 (Friday-Wednesday) at the par-72, 7,300-yard Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Ill.
The Sooners are making their seventh straight appearance in the championships and join just Illinois, Texas and USC as the only programs to qualify for each of the last seven championships.
OU heads to Illinois off a fourth-place finish at the NCAA Stanford Regional. Sophomore Brad Dalke took the individual title at the regional with a career-low 198 (-12) to mark the first win of his career.
The Sooner lineup for the championships will include senior Max McGreevy, juniors Grant Hirschman and Rylee Reinertson, Dalke and sophomore Blaine Hale. Redshirt freshman Quade Cummins is traveling with the team to serve as a substitute if needed if the Sooners advance to match play competition.
Competing as the No. 13 seed, OU will tee off in the afternoon wave on Friday, starting from hole No. 10 at 1:55 p.m. CT. The Sooners will be paired with No. 14 seed Virginia and No. 15 UCF.
THE FIELD WITH TOURNAMENT SEED (GOLFWEEK/SAGARIN RANKINGS IN PARENTHESES)
- USC (1)
2. Oklahoma State (4)
3. Vanderbilt (3)
4. Stanford (7)
5. Baylor (5)
6. LSU (2)
7. Illinois (6)
8. Oregon (9)
9. Kent State (12)
10. Texas (10)
11. Clemson (13)
12. UNLV (16)
13. Oklahoma (14)
14. Virginia (19)
15. UCF (50)
16. Duke (18)
17. Auburn (20)
18. Ole Miss (21)
19. Pepperdine (29)
20. Arizona State (23)
21. Florida State (24)
22. North Carolina (28)
23. Alabama (33)
24. Lipscomb (35)
25. Kennesaw State (31)
26. Purdue (32)
27. Jacksonville (41)
28. New Mexico (42)
29. Iowa State (45)
30. Penn State (46)
INDIVIDUALS WITH SEED
1. Will Zalatoris, Wake Forest
2. Chandler Phillips, Texas A&M
3. Travis Trace, North Florida
4. Trent Wallace, Illinois State
5. Mason Overstreet, Arkansas
6. Cam Norman, Troy
OU LINEUP
1. Max McGreevy, Senior: Dominated at the Lone Star Invitational, firing a three-round 196 (-20) to earn his third career title … Recorded all three rounds in the 60s at the Lone Star Invite, including a school-record-matching 63 (-9) in the second round … Earned co-medalist honors at the Golf Club of Georgia Collegiate … Placed in the top 20 in nine of 13 tournaments this season, including three in the top-five … Named to the 2017 All-Big 12 Team.
- Grant Hirschman, Junior: Claimed his second individual win of the season at the Southern Highlands Collegiate, earning the title with a birdie on the first playoff hole … Earned his first career tournament win at the Gopher Invitational, firing a birdie on the final hole to earn the title outright … Has one other top-five placing, tying for fifth at The Maxwell … Finished in the top 20 in eight events this season, including five out of the last six events.
- Rylee Reinertson, Junior: Tied for fourth at the Lone Star Invitational, marking the best finish of his career and his first career top-five placing … Earned two consecutive top-10 showings with a tie for sixth at The Maxwell and a tie for ninth at the Big 12 Championship … Has one other top-20 finish this season, a tie for 12th at the Southern Intercollegiate … Named the 2015 and 2016 Nebraska Amateur Golfer of the Year.
- Brad Dalke, Sophomore: Clinched his first career win at the NCAA Stanford Regional behind a career-low 198 (-12) … Finished all three rounds of the regional in the 60s, highlighted by a career-low 64 (-6) in the second round … Entered the regional off of back-to-back top 10 finishes, tying for 10th at The Maxwell and tying for ninth at the Big 12 Championship … Earned an invite to The Masters April 6-9 after finishing runner-up at the 2016 U.S. Amateur.
- Blaine Hale, Sophomore: Earned two top-five finishes this season, tying for fourth at the Ka’anapali Collegiate Classic and sharing fifth at the Gopher Invitational, the first top-five placings of his career … Shot a career-low round, 66, three times this year (Nike Golf Collegiate Invitational first round, Ka’anapali Collegiate Classic second and third rounds) … Most recently, tied for 38th at the NCAA Stanford Regional … Named Big 12 Co-Golfer of the Month in November.
THE COURSE
The par-72, 7,300-yard Rich Harvest Farms will serve as the site for the 2017 NCAA Championships.
FORMAT
The 30 teams and six individuals that qualified for the championships will play 54 holes of stroke play total, completing 18 each day Friday through Sunday. The Sooners, alongside Virginia and UCF, will tee off for the first round on Friday at 1:55 p.m. CT from hole No. 10 and the second round on Saturday at 8:35 a.m. CT from hole No. 1.
On Monday, the top 15 teams and the top nine individuals not on an advancing team will compete in the final 18 holes of stroke play. A 72-hole individual champion will be decided and the top eight teams will advance to match play.
Match play will begin Tuesday with the quarterfinals and semifinals. The championship match will take place on Wednesday to determine the team champion.
TV COVERAGE
The Golf Channel will broadcast NCAA Championships competition Monday-Wednesday. Live coverage of Monday’s play will take place from 4-7 p.m. CT. On Tuesday, match play competition will be aired from 10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. CT (quarterfinals) and from 3:30-7 p.m. CT (semifinals). Wednesday’s championship match will be broadcast from 3-7 p.m. CT.
In addition to live event coverage, the Golf Channel will also host pre-game and post-game coverage each day.
WEATHER FORECAST
Friday: Partly cloudy with a high of 75 degrees, wind from the south, southeast at 10-15 mph and a 70 percent chance of rain.
Saturday: Cloudy with a high of 78 degrees and wind from the southeast at 5-10 mph.
Sunday: Cloudy with a high of 76 degrees, wind from the west at 10-20 mph and a 60 percent chance of rain.
Monday: Partly cloudy with a high of 73 degrees and wind from the west at 20-30 mph.
Tuesday: Partly cloudy with a high of 75 degrees and wind from the west at 15-25 mph.
Wednesday: Cloudy with a high of 74 degrees, wind from the west, northwest at 10-15 mph and a 40 percent chance of rain.
OU’S NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS HISTORY
This season marks the seventh consecutive season the Sooners have advanced to the NCAA Championships and the program’s 38th all-time appearance. The Sooners won the national title in 1989 and have had two individual champions, Walter Emery (1933) and Jimmy Vickers (1952).
In 2016, the Sooners advanced to match play for the first time since it was introduced to the championships in 2009. They were defeated by Texas, 4-1, in the quarterfinals. OU qualified for match play by narrowly making the cut of 15 after 54 holes before moving into the coveted eighth place in the final round of stroke play.
LIVE STATS
Live scoring will be available on GolfStat.com.