April 12, 2008
TEMPE, Ariz. -
Complete Second Round Results in PDF Format
With nowhere to go but up, the San Diego State men's golf team came back strong on Saturday, firing a 2-under-par 282 to move into 11th place during the second round of the 36th annual ASU Thunderbird Invitational in Tempe, Ariz. One day after carding an uncharacteristic 304, the Aztecs (+18, 586) shaved 22 strokes off their first-round total by recording the third-best team score over the second 18 holes to climb five places at the 7,057-yard, par-71 Karsten Golf Course. Tournament host Arizona State, fielding two squads, maintains its grip atop the team standings at 10-under and 3-under, respectively, followed by Colorado State (E), Denver (+1) and Oregon (+4).
Leading the SDSU charge was senior Aaron Goldberg, who posted the third-lowest individual round of the day after logging a 3-under 68. The Encinitas, Calif., product sank four birdies, including three on the back nine to jump 37 places in the 87-golfer field from the 54th position into a tie for 17th. With his performance, Goldberg finds himself just two strokes out of the top 10 heading into Sunday's final round.
Freshman Matt Hoffenberg also displayed dramatic improvement on Saturday, overcoming a dreary opening-round 77 by shooting a 1-under 70. The Simi Valley, Calif., native offset five bogeys by draining a team-high five birdies over the second 18 holes to vault 21 places from the 66th spot into a tie for 45th. With his effort, Hoffenberg (+5, 147) remains four shots back in contention for a top-20 finish. Fellow classmate Johan Carlsson (Gothenburg, Sweden) demonstrated upward mobility on the individual leaderboard as well, firing an even-par 71 to climb out of the 80th position into a tie for 61st at 8-over 150.
Meanwhile, senior Chad Moscovic's score counted for the second day in a row as the Stockton, Calif., product trimmed three strokes off his first-round total after carding a 2-over 73. Moscovic sits in a tie for 56th at 7-over 149. Rounding out the Aztec contingency was junior David Palm (Landvetter, Sweden), who posted his second straight 76 to end the day in a tie for 66th at 10-over 152.
New Mexico's Kyle Nielsen (-6) emerged with a one-shot lead over Zen Brown of Colorado State at the conclusion of Saturday's play.
The ASU Thunderbird Invitational concludes Sunday with final-round action as San Diego State is scheduled to be among the last group out, teeing off with players from Pacific and New Mexico beginning at 8:17 a.m. PT. A live scoring link will be available on the home page of GoAztecs.com.
ASU Thunderbird Invitational At Tempe, Ariz. Karsten Golf Course (7,057 yards, par 71)
Second Round Team Standings (Top 5 + SDSU)1. Arizona State 279-279 - 558 (-10)2. Arizona State (B) 279-286 - 565 (-3)3. Colorado State 280-288 - 568 (E)4. Denver 285-284 - 569 (+1)5. Oregon 291-281 - 572 (+4)11. San Diego State 304-282 - 586 (+18)
Second Round Leaders (Top 5 + SDSU)1. Kyle Nielsen, New Mexico 66-70 - 136 (-6)2. Zen Brown, Colorado State 68-69 - 137 (-5)3. Erik Coover, Arizona State (B) 71-67 - 138 (-4)T4. Derek Sipe, Oregon 71-68 - 139 (-3)T4. Braxton Marquez, Arizona State 66-73 - 139 (-3)T17. Aaron Goldberg, SDSU 75-68 - 143 (+1)T45. Matt Hoffenberg, SDSU 77-70 - 147 (+5)T56. Chad Moscovic, SDSU 76-73 - 149 (+7)T61. Johan Carlsson, SDSU 79-71 - 150 (+8)T66. David Palm, SDSU 76-76 - 152 (+10)