University Southern California Trojans
No. 5 USC Set For NCAA Championships Central Regional
May 14, 2007 | Men's Golf
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May 14, 2007
Live NCAA Championships West Regional Results at Golfstat.com.
The USC men's golf team, ranked No. 5 in the latest Golfweek.com poll, will compete in the 2007 NCAA Championships West Regional, Thursday through Saturday (May 17-19), at host Arizona State's Karsten G.C. The three-round tournament begins each day at 6:30 a.m. (PDT).
USC, under first-year head coach Chris Zambri and 13th-year director of golf Kurt Schuette, is coming off a dominating Pac-10 Championships title win which it won by 36 strokes. The upcoming regional appearance will mark USC's 37th consecutive NCAA Championship appearance, this time as a No. 4 seed in the West.
Three 27-team regional tournaments (including six individual players) will be conducted May 17-19 to determine the final championship field, set for May 30-June 2, at Golden Horseshoe G.C. in Williamsburg, Va. Virginia Commonwealth University is the host institution. Ten teams and two individuals not on advancing teams will move on from each regional to the championship finals.
USC is one of nine Pac-10 schools that qualified for the 81-team field and all nine were placed in the West Regional. Washington State was the only Pac-10 school that did not get selected.
In addition to USC, eight other schools ranked in the current Golfweek.com Top 25 will play in the West Regional. They are No. 2 Stanford, No. 8 UCLA, No. 9 UNLV, No. 13 East Tennessee State, No. 15 BYU, No. 19 Arizona State, No. 21 Wake Forest and No. 22 Arizona.
A year ago, USC participated in the NCAA East Regional, but did not qualify for the NCAA Championships after finishing tied for 15th. Then-senior Taylor Wood, however, finished tied for second to earn a spot as an individual in the NCAA Championships.
USC competed at Karsten G.C. earlier this spring, posting a third-place finish and a three-round 849.
USC AT THE 2007 PAC-10 CHAMPIONSHIPS
USC won its Pac-10 best 18th conference championship, freshman Jamie Lovemark became Troy's 20th conference individual title winner and senior Joshua Wooding and freshman Rory Hie finished third and fourth, respectively, as the Trojans ran away from the field at the 2007 Pac-10 Championships at the Eugene (Ore.) C.C. USC combined to fire a 16-under 344 final round for a 72-hole, 51-under 1389 (358-342-345-344). USC's 1389 was its lowest 72-hole total ever at the Pac-10 Championships and was just five strokes off the conference record of 1384, set by Arizona State in 2000. USC's 36-stroke margin of victory was the biggest Pac-10 title victory since the Sun Devils' 37-shot win in 2000. The team title is USC's first since winning back-to-back titles in 2001 and 2002.
USC TEAM AND PLAYER NOTES
As a team in 2006-2007, USC has finished below a tie for fifth only once in 11 events. USC has won three titles, starting with the Inverness Intercollegiate and followed by the Oregon Duck Invitational and the 2007 Pac-10 Championships. USC also has three second-place finishes.
Jamie Lovemark
Freshman Jamie Lovemark, a semifinalist for the 2007 Ben Hogan Award, which goes to the nation's top men's golfer, is currently ranked the nation's No. 1 collegiate men's golfer by Golfweek.com.
On April 25, he won his third tournament of the season, a six-stroke victory at the 2007 Pac-10 Championships. He became USC's first Pac-10 winner since Sam Randolph in 1983, though Randolph tied for first that year. USC's last outright champion came in 1976 when Scott Simpson won the conference's southern division title. For his efforts, he was named Pac-10 Co-Golfer of the Year (with Arizona State's Niklas Lemke) and Pac-10 Freshman of the Year.
Lovemark's final round 67 was his fourth straight sub-70 effort of the event for a 19-under 72-hole 269. It marked the biggest individual margin of victory since UCLA's John Merrick's 10-stroke win in 2003 and was the lowest 72-hole finish since Arizona's Ricky Barnes won the 2001 Pac-10 title with a 268. It was also the most under par at the Pac-10 Championships since Sun Devil Paul Casey's 23-under effort in 2000.
On March 27, Lovemark tied for the individual title at the Oregon Duck Invitational with 214 (67-75-72). It complemented his first win of the season, a victory at the Big Ten/Pac-10 Challenge in October.
Lovemark leads the Trojans in stroke average (70.65) and has been USC's highest finisher in six of 11 starts. He has carded 16 rounds in the 60s, including a USC season low 64 at the USC Collegiate Invitational. He has six top 3 finishes on the season and finished outside the top 18 only once this year.
In one stretch, he fired seven consecutive sub-70 rounds. In his first win, he led wire-to-wire to win the Big Ten/Pac-10 Challenge, posting an eight-shot victory. The title was USC's first since Ben Hayes won to kick off the 2004-2005 season and was Troy's first by a freshman since Hunter Mahan won back-to-back events in the fall of 2000.
Earlier this year, Lovemark earned an invite to play as an amateur in the 2007 Buick Invitational (Jan. 25-28) and parlayed it into a tie for 39th. He finished with a 72-hole 285 (66-74-73-72, -3).
On April 12, Lovemark was among eight Americans selected to represent the United States in the 2007 Palmer Cup presented by Monster. The annual Ryder Cup-style competition between American collegiate golfers and their counterparts from Europe will be played June 7-8, at Caves Valley G.C.
Rory Hie
Freshman Rory Hie has been equally strong of late and was named the Pac-10 Men's Golfer of the Month for March. He kicked off the month with a win at the USC Collegiate Invitational, a two-shot victory. He fired a three-round 208 (69-68-71) for the title, helping Troy to a second-place finish. He then led USC at the General Jim Hackler Championship, where he tied for sixth with a 212 (70-73-69), leading USC to third.
He ended the month with a tie for 12th at the Oregon Duck Invitational, helping the Trojans to the team title in that event with a 220 (72-73-75).
Hie, ranked No. 47 in the nation, is second on the squad in stroke average (72.41), has four top 10 finishes, seven in the top 20 and has carded 11 rounds in the 60s.
He posted back-to-back top 4 finishes in the last two events. First, he tied for third at the ASU Thunderbird Invitational with a 205 (67-69, 69). Next, he took fourth at the Pac-10 Championships with a four-round 279 (-9, 72-67-74-66). His final round was a USC career best and helped him to his fifth top 12 finish in USC's last six events.
Tom Glissmeyer
Sophomore Tom Glissmeyer is ranked No. 74 in the country and is third on the team with a stroke average of 72.88.
He has four top 10 finishes and five in the top 20. Most recently, he tied for ninth at the Pac-10 Championships with a four-round 285 (-3, 73-70-71-71).
He finished fifth at the season-opening Inverness Intercollegiate and tied for fifth at the UH Hilo Intercollegiate with a 201 (66-66-69), USC's top score of the event. The three sub-70 rounds gave him five straight at the time.
Glissmeyer also tied for 12th at the CordeValle Collegiate after back-to-back 69s to close out the tournament and tied for eighth at the General Jim Hackler Championship with a 213 (67-68-78). He has seven rounds in the 60s this year.
Joshua Wooding
Senior Joshua Wooding posted the second best finish of his USC career at the Pac-10 Championships, a third place, 10-under performance (278, 74-69-66-69). Wooding entered the championships with three rounds in the 60s this season and matched the total in three days of play. His Pac-10 finish is his best since his second-place effort at the Inverness Intercollegiate at the start of the 2005-2006 season.
A top 25 finisher in seven of his last nine outings, his previous best outing prior to the conference championships was a fifth at the Oregon Duck Invitational with a 218 (72-76-70).
Wooding tied for 11th at the Big Ten/Pac-10 Challenge and tied for 19th at the CordeValle Collegiate to close out the fall schedule. He tied for 18th at the General Jim Hackler Championship
Fourth on the team with a stroke average of 72.97, his six rounds in the 60s this year includes a 65 at the CordeValle Collegiate, second lowest on the season for USC.
Jordan Nasser
Senior Jordan Nasser rounds out a strong fivesome with a stroke average of 74.15 and has finished in the top 30 in six of 11 starts.
He is coming off a tie for ninth at the Pac-10 Championships with a 285 (-3, 73-70-70-72), his second straight top 10 effort at the conference tournament. This year's finish was his best in any event since last year's Pac-10 outing.
Nasser posted a then-season-best tie for 17th at the Oregon Duck Invitational, where he finished with a 221 (71-76-74). He tied for 29th in the opener, tied for 27th at PGA West, tied for 28th at the Big Ten/Pac-10 Challenge and tied for 30th at the General Jim Hackler Championship. He has carded a 72 or lower 11 times.
Ryan Linton
Sophomore Ryan Linton is the only other Trojan to play in more than event. In four starts, Linton tied for 30th as an individual at the USC Collegiate Invitational (75-72-73, 220), tied for 69th at the Oregon Duck Invitational, tied for 14th at the ASU Thunderbird (70-73-70, 213) and tied for 19th at the Pac-10 Championships with a 289 (+1, 71-76-71-71). Each of his rounds of 71 at the Pac-10s counted toward USC's team totals.
Listed below are the teams and individuals selected to participate in this year's regional championships. Teams winning automatic qualification are designated by their conferences in parentheses.
EAST REGIONAL
The Golf Club of Georgia in Alpharetta, Ga.; Hosted by Georgia Tech
Teams (seeded in the following order)
1. Georgia
2. Clemson
3. Florida
4. Coastal Carolina (Big South Conference)
5. Georgia Tech (Atlantic Coast Conference)
6. Georgia State
7. Charlotte (Atlantic 10 Conference)
8. North Carolina
9. Florida State
10. Duke
11. Auburn
12. Mississippi
13. Chattanooga (Southern Conference)
14. Alabama-Birmingham
15. UCF
16. Virginia Tech
17. Penn State
18. Old Dominion (Colonial Athletic Association)
19. Jacksonville State (Ohio Valley Conference)
20. Louisiana-Lafayette (Sun Belt Conference)
21. St. John's (New York)
22. Eastern Michigan (Mid-American Conference)
23. Maryland
24. Longwood
25. Rhode Island
26. Hartford
27. Boston College
Individuals
1. Duncan Stewart, Jacksonville
2. Fredric Sundberg, Campbell
3. Chris Narramore, Middle Tennessee
4. Matt Cook, Western Carolina
5. Russell Knox, Jacksonville
6. Jeff Dennis, North Florida
CENTRAL REGIONAL
Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Ill.; Hosted by Northern Illinois
Teams (seeded in the following order)
1. Alabama
2. Oklahoma State (Big 12 Conference)
3. Lamar (Southland Conference)
4. Texas A&M
5. Louisville (Big East Conference)
6. Tennessee (Southeastern Conference)
7. Tulsa (Conference USA)
8. Texas
9. TCU
10. Michigan State (Big Ten Conference)
11. Minnesota
12. Southeastern Louisiana
13. Northwestern
14. Texas Tech
15. Wisconsin
16. Purdue
17. Wichita State
18. Southern Methodist
19. Baylor
20. Kansas
21. Colorado
22. Nebraska
23. Oklahoma
24. Illinois State (Missouri Valley Conference)
25. Western Illinois (Mid-Continent Conference)
26. Siena (Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference)
27. Texas Southern (Southwestern Athletic Conference)
Individuals
1. Andrew Landry, Arkansas
2. Jorge Campillo, Indiana
3. Jordan Irwin, Houston
4. Mauricio Tamez, Oral Roberts
5. Mike Van Sickle, Marquette
6. Jason Kokrak, Xavier
WEST REGIONAL
Karsten Creek G.C. in Phoenix, Ariz.; Hosted by Arizona State
Teams (seeded in the following order)
1. Stanford
2. UCLA
3. UNLV
4. USC (Pacific-10 Conference)
5. East Tennessee State (Atlantic Sun Conference)
6. Brigham Young (Mountain West Conference)
7. Arizona State
8. Wake Forest
9. Arizona
10. UC Irvine (Big West Conference)
11. South Carolina
12. Washington
13. Vanderbilt
14. Augusta State
15. Pepperdine (West Coast Conference)
16. San Diego State
17. New Mexico
18. Oregon State
19. Colorado State
20. Oregon
21. California
22. Nevada (Western Athletic Conference)
23. Denver
24. Pennsylvania (Ivy Group)
25. Detroit (Horizon League)
26. Bucknell (Patriot League)
27. Monmouth (Northeast Conference)
Individuals
1. Brian Locke, Loyola Marymount
2. Dustin Pimm, Utah
3. Darrin Hall, San Diego
4. Michael McRae, St. Mary's (California)
5. Geoff Gonzalez, Cal Poly
6. Thomas Petersson, Pacific
