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March 23, 2003
EUGENE, Ore. - The San Diego State men's golf team returns from a three-week break to face a familiar western field at the Oregon Duck Invitational March 24-25 in Eugene, Ore. The Aztecs (No. 35 Golfweek-Sagarin/No. 45 Golfstat), who are coming off their worst finish of the season with an 11th-place tie at the March 3-4 Cleveland Golf Classic, have an opportunity to improve their national ranking against one of the most competitive and balanced fields they face this season at the par-72, 6,854-yard Eugene Country Club.
The Team Focus...
- At the 16-team Duck Invite, SDSU will be facing a predominantly western field with all 14 participating Div. I teams residing in the top 100 of the Golfweek and Golfstat ratings, headlined by No. 3/10 UCLA and No. 7/9 Arizona. However, the Aztecs are very familiar with their adversaries, having already faced 11 of the 15 other teams and racking up an 11-10 head-to-head record.
Oregon Field 3/18 3/18 SDSU RecordTeam Rankings Golfweek Golfstat vs. In 02-03San Diego St. 35th 45th Arizona 7th 9th 0-2UC Davis n/r 4th(DII) 1st meetingHawai'i-Hilo n/r n/r 2-0Michigan State 48th 40th 1st meetingNevada 81st 82nd 2-1Northwestern 17th 20th 1st meetingOregon 56th 53rd 1-0Oregon State 52nd 51st 2-0Pepperdine 21st 25th 1-1San Jose State 93rd 95th 2-1Stanford 80th 72nd 0-1UCLA 3rd 10th 0-1Vanderbilt 23rd 32nd 1st meetingWashington 26th 24th 0-1Washington St. 94th 86th 1-2
- Host Oregon is the defending team champion, as the Ducks claimed the title named for them with a 15-under 849 at last year's site, Shadow Hills Country Club in Junction City, Ore. Last year's individual medalist was then-senior Jon Reehoom of Washington State (206, -10).
- SDSU finished seventh at the Duck last season, which broke a streak of three straight victories for the Aztecs to begin the spring 2002 campaign. Among returning Aztecs, John Lieber was the top finisher in a tie for 23rd last season at 2-over 218.
...And The Individual Spotlight
- The individual field includes 16 of Golfweek's top 100, highlighted by No. 1 Brandt Snedeker of Vanderbilt, who has finished among the top three in each of Vandy's seven tournaments this season. Fifteen other individuals in the field appear in the top 100, including three each from Arizona, Northwestern and UCLA - coincidentally the top three rated teams in the field according to Golfweek.
- While senior Lars Johansson (No. 122) is the top-rated Aztec on the Golfweek/Sagarin list, SDSU does boast an outstanding team depth that is best shown by the fact that seven Aztecs stand among the top 285. Only Arizona, with eight golfers among Golfweek's top 255, can rival SDSU's depth at Nos. 1-5 and beyond.
The Update
- SDSU has had three weeks off from competition after a stunning third-round collapse at the Cleveland Golf Classic left the Aztecs with their worst result of the season, an 11th-place tie. Just hours removed from a 283 that was the second-lowest score of the second round, SDSU struggled to the worst round of the final 18 with a 298 that sent the Aztecs from third place and leading six higher-rated teams to a tie for 11th and a finish ahead of five total teams. SDSU placed only two golfers in the top 40 of an event for the first time this season at the USC-hosted event.
- During the varsity team's break, SDSU sent out JV squads consisting of Aztecs playing as individuals to three local tournaments. The reserve Aztecs performed well, with 11-of-15 earning top-20 results including all five SDSU golfers at the Southern California Intercollegiate. Redshirt freshman Andrew Scott, SDSU's second-leading scorer this season, kept his game sharp by claiming his first career title at the SoCal with a 2-under 211.
Around The Green
- With Scott's medalist performance at the SoCal Intercollegiate, SDSU individuals earn their second title of the spring, third of the 2002-03 season and fourth in the last two years. In a showcase of the Aztec program's quality depth, four different individuals have won those titles. Incidentally, SDSU has also won four team titles over the past two seasons.
- Redshirt sophomore Aaron Choi took advantage of the JV schedule to polish his game by recording scores of 74 or better in all eight rounds. With finishes of second, 12th and second again, Choi lowered his season scoring average almost a full stroke (73.83 to 72.85).
- Senior John Lieber was his usual consistent self in the fall, finishing no worse than 49th in his five events. But in the spring, he has shown the form that earned him 2002 Mountain West Golfer of the Year by scoring par or lower in his first five rounds and dropping more than one-and-a-half strokes from his fall average (73.67) to the spring (team-best 71.00). He registered top-20s in each of the first two spring events and now has three for the season.
Oregon Duck Invitational
Hosted by: Oregon
Site: Eugene C.C. - Eugene, Ore.
Dates: Mar. 24-25 * Par: 72 * Yardage: 6,854
The Field: SDSU, Arizona, UC Davis, Hawaii-Hilo, Michigan State, Nevada, Northwestern, Oregon, Oregon State, Pepperdine, San Jose State, Stanford, UCLA, Vanderbilt, Washington, Washington State
SDSU Stroke Averages Avg. Rds.Lars Johansson 72.17 12Andrew Scott 72.43 21Mark Warman 72.67 18John Lieber 72.90 21Aaron Choi 72.85 20John Lepak 73.05 21Charlie Smith 73.12 17Brian Miller 73.53 17Chris Galeski 73.91 11Gilberto Rodriguez 74.18 11
Golfweek/Sagarin (3/18)1. Clemson2. UNLV3. TCU4. Augusta State5. Texas6. Wake Forest7. Arizona8. North Carolina9. Florida10. UCLA35. San Diego State
GCAA Poll (3/12)1. Clemson2. Augusta State3. TCU4. Florida5. Wake Forest6. Arizona7. UNLV8. Texas9. UCLA10. Oklahoma Statearv. San Diego State
Golfstat (3/18)1. Clemson2. Texas3. UCLA4. UNLV5. Augusta State6. Wake Forest7. Oklahoma State8. TCU9. Arizona10. North Carolina45. San Diego State
Golf World Poll (3/21)1. Clemson2. Augusta State3. UNLV4. TCU5. Texas5. Oklahoma State7. Arizona8. Florida9. UCLA10. Wake Forest