Feb. 15, 2015
SAN DIEGO - Fresh off a decisive performance in their opening tournament of the spring season, the San Diego State men's golf team looks to keep the momentum rolling this week when it competes in The Prestige at PGA WEST, Feb. 16-18, in La Quinta, Calif.
The Aztecs are one of 15 squads scheduled to participate in the 15th annual event, which will be conducted on the par-72, 7,204-yard Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course, with UC Davis and Stanford serving as co-hosts.
The Prestige at PGA WEST will be contested with 18-hole rounds on three straight days and boasts one of the most elite fields in the nation. Along with 28th-ranked SDSU, the tournament features No. 2 Oregon, No. 4 USC, No. 8 LSU, No. 14 Texas Tech, No. 15 Arizona State, No. 16 UCLA, No. 17 Washington, No. 20 Stanford and No. 24 Oklahoma State. The premier lineup also includes UC Davis (65), Pepperdine (110) and Gonzaga (128), while Stirling University of Scotland rounds out the list of competing schools.
A live scoring link for the three rounds, which commence with tee times each day at 7:30 a.m. PT, will be available courtesy of Golfstat on GoAztecs.com.
SDSU head coach Ryan Donovan will accompany five golfers to the Coachella Valley, including senior Xander Schauffele (San Diego, Calif.), junior Ryann Ree (Redondo Beach, Calif.), sophomore Nahum Mendoza III (San Diego, Calif.), freshman PJ Samiere (Kailua, Hawaii) and sophomore Brian Song (Beverly Hills, Calif.).
The Aztecs are coming off an impressive showing last week at their own Barona Collegiate Cup where they swept both the team and individual titles, led by Schauffele, who captured medalist honors for the third time in his career. The Scripps Ranch High alumnus established a school record with the lowest score in relation to par in a 54-hole event after carding a 17-under 199. For his efforts, Schauffele garnered Mountain West Men's Golfer of the Week accolades.
In addition, SDSU received a pair of top-15 finishes from Samiere, who tied for sixth with a season-best 8-under 208, while Song landed in the 14th position after posting a collegiate-low 3-under 213.
Not to be outdone, Mendoza and Ree earned their way into the starting lineup this week, thanks in part to their efforts at Barona as unattached competitors. Mendoza finished in the runner-up spot three shots in back of Schauffele with a career-best 14-under 202, while Ree, a mid-year transfer from Oregon, tied for eighth with a 7-under 209 in his debut for the Scarlet and Black.
As a team, SDSU won its home tournament going away, topping crosstown foe San Diego by 12 strokes after posting a collective 31-under 833. The Aztecs led by just one over the Toreros after round two, but shot a team season-low 15-under 273 during the final 18 holes to claim its first event title of the season.
The Aztecs will be competing at The Prestige at PGA WEST for the fourth straight season after finishing eighth out of 12 squads a year ago. Stanford took home both the team and individual championships in 2014. The Cardinal's Patrick Rodgers (-9), who claimed medalist honors at the event last season, has since turned professional, leaving Arizona State's Max Rottluff (-8), who finished one shot behind in second, as the top returning individual.
Meanwhile, Mendoza (T-35th) and Schauffele (T-43rd) are SDSU's lone returning starters from last season's lineup.
This year marks the first time The Prestige at PGA WEST will be held on the Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course. The event was a fixture on the fall portion of college men's golf schedule for 12 years before moving to the spring in 2013.
Previously, the Greg Norman Resort Course played host to the tournament on eight occasions from 2004-08 and 2011-14, sandwiched around a two-year stay at the TPC Stadium Course from 2009-10. Other venues included the Desert Willow Golf Club (2000-01) and the La Quinta Mountain Resort Course (2002-03).
Following The Prestige, the Aztecs will head to the desert to compete in the National Invitational Tournament, Feb. 28-Mar. 2, at the OMNI Tucson National Golf Club in Tucson, Ariz.