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Sept. 29, 2003
SAN DIEGO - After taking a week off after the start of the fall season, the Aztecs return to action today for the first two rounds of the 54-hole Opus Northwest Husky Invitational at the Gold Mountain Golf Complex in Bremerton, Wash. The Husky Invitational has a slightly different setup than most collegiate golf tournaments as all teams will play six during the round and count five scores. In most tournaments, including the NCAA Championships, teams play five and count four scores.
* Hosted by the University of Washington, the Husky Invitational nine-team field boasts several of the top teams in the country. California is ranked No. 1 in the country in the latest Golfweek standings, while BYU is No. 16. UCLA is also picked as the third-ranked team in the Precept coaches poll.
* Mark Warman leads the list of starters for SDSU in this week's Invitational, that includes four newcomers and three freshmen. Warman is the only player that has competed in each of the first two competitions. Freshman Cory Segall gets his second start after posting a 71.33 scoring average in North Carolina. Junior Aaron Choi and freshman Aaron Goldberg will also compete after solid starts at the Tucker. Freshman Jamie Puterbaugh will also get his second opportunity, while Arizona transfer Steven Eshbach will make his first Aztec start.
Warman's World
* Aztecs senior Mark Warman was picked as one of the top 50 men's golfers to watch this year by GolfWorld. Warman is averaging 72.17 strokes in his first six rounds of action, and posted an eighth place finish at the Mid Pines Intercollegiate to open the season. Mark has earned All-Mountain West Conference honors in each of the past two seasons, one of only two players in the MWC this season that has received multiple conference awards.
* Warman will face several of the best individual's in the country including Steve Conway from UCLA, who was No. 5 on the GolfWorld list, and Peter Tomasulo from California. Other Cal representatives Jeff Hood and Jeff Wilson, along with BYU's Todd Miller, all rank in the top 50 on Golfweek's list.
Recapping The Tucker Intercollegiate
* SDSU posted an eighth-place finish at the Sept. 13-14 William H. Tucker Intercollegiate, held at the UNM Championship Course in Albuquerque, N.M. The Aztecs shot 303-292-293 for a total of 888, finishing 23 shots behind team champion Arizona State.
* SDSU finished behind three top 20 schools including ASU who is ranked No. 5 in last week's Precept Coaches poll. No. 9 UNLV and the host school No. 15 New Mexico also topped the Aztecs. The Aztecs did earn a tie with No. 14 Arizona and defeated No. 18 NC State.
* Junior Aaron Choi finished as SDSU's top individual as he tied for 17th at 3-over 219. Mark Warman was right behind with a 221, which tied for 30th. Aaron Goldberg tied for 34th one stroke behind Warman at 222.
Recapping Mid Pines
* The Aztecs opened the year with a seventh-place finish at the Mid Pines Intercollegiate in North Carolina. SDSU fired scores of 288-288-285 to finish at 3-under 861. Golfweek's No. 1 California and No.2 Xavier finished in the top two spots with scores of 832 and 836, respectively.
* Senior Mark Warman earned an eighth-place finish as an individual after shooting 4-under 212. Warman opened with two rounds of 70 and finished with an even-par 72. The tournament marked the eighth time Warman has finished in the top 10 in his SDSU career. Freshman Cory Segall ended up tied for 19th at 2-under 214. Segall shot 70-71-73 in his first tournament as an Aztec. Jeff Hansen posted the top score of the year to date with a final round 68, which propelled him to a 24th place finish at even par.
By The Numbers
* After a week off, the Aztecs fell to 52nd in Golfweek's latest rankings with a rating of 72.58. Against the nation's 64th-ranked schedule, the Aztecs are 8-13-1 against Golfweek's Top 100, and 17-13-1 overall.
* According to Golfstat's 2002-03 Division I team rankings, the Aztecs finished as Golfstat's 33rd-ranked team with a head-to-head record of 245-32.
Head Coach Dale Walker
* Head coach Dale Walker is in his fourth season at the helm of the SDSU golf program. Walker led the Aztecs back to the NCAA Championships in 2002-03, the first time SDSU has made the trip to the finals since 1999. A standout performer for the Aztecs from 1975-79, he has guided the Aztecs to eight tournament titles since taking over as head coach. Walker is assisted by Ryan Donovan, a San Diego State graduate who played for Walker and also spent time on the professional circuit.