March 31, 2016
SAN DIEGO - The San Diego State men's golf team resumes its spring schedule this weekend when it travels to the desert to compete in the ASU Thunderbird Invitational, April 2-3, in Tempe, Ariz. The 44th annual tournament gets underway Saturday with the first two rounds on the par-71, 7,013-yard Karsten Golf Course, while the final 18 holes are slated for a Sunday completion.
The No. 22 Aztecs are one of nine teams in the 13-school field ranked among the Golfstat top 100 this weekend. Along with fifth-ranked and tournament host Arizona State, SDSU will battle California (13), Iowa (70), UC Davis (74), Cal Poly (80), Iowa State (91), Santa Clara (96) and Minnesota (97), while Hawai'i, Princeton, South Dakota State and the University of San Diego round out the list of competing squads.
The Scarlet and Black will be paired with ASU and USD for the first two rounds, which commence in a shotgun start Saturday at 7:30 a.m. PT. A live scoring link will be available courtesy of Golfstat will be available on GoAztecs.com.
For the second straight outing, Aztec head coach Ryan Donovan will employ the starting lineup of seniors Riccardo Michelini (Carpi, Italy) and Ryann Ree (Redondo Beach, Calif.), juniors Nahum Mendoza III (San Diego, Calif.) and Brian Song (Beverly Hills, Calif.), along with sophomore Gunn Yang (Pyeongchang, South Korea). In addition, sophomore Blake Abercrombie (Rocklin, Calif.) will make the trip east as an individual participant.
SDSU is coming off a resounding victory at its own Barona Collegiate Cup last week when it shot a collective 26-under 838 to win by a whopping 42 strokes over second-place Minnesota (+16) at Barona Creek Golf Club. All five Aztec starters completed the tournament among the individual top 10, led by Song, who finished alone in the runner-up spot at 6-under 210 for his highest placement as a collegian, while Ree (-5) was one stroke behind in a tie for third, followed closely by Yang (-4) and Michelini (-4), who both landed in the fifth position.
Not to be outdone, Mendoza, who finished in a tie for ninth at Barona, leads SDSU with a 70.94 stroke average in 18 rounds this season, followed closely by Ree (70.96) and Michelini (71.08), who are the only two players to start all eight tournaments for the Aztecs. Entering the weekend, Ree ranks 23rd in the latest Golfstat Cup standings, followed by Michelini, who occupies the 31st position, while Mendoza checks in at No. 36.
The ASU Thunderbird Invitational was christened in 1973 and has been contested on an annual basis since then. Former SDSU All-American J.J. Spaun captured back-to-back individual titles in 2010 and 2011, joining Phil Mickelson (1991-92) and Jon Rahm (2014-15) as the only players to garner multiple medalist honors in the tournament. The Aztecs have also had two individual winners in Curt Worley (1978) and Howard Johnson (1985).
Rahm is seeking to become the first three-time champion in tournament history after firing a 15-under par 195 last year, leading the Sun Devils to the team title. ASU's Max Rottluff, who finished second last season, is also back in the mix, along with fellow teammate Nicolo Galletti (T-6th), Nick Voke of Iowa State (3rd) and USD's Alex Chiarella (T-8th).
The Aztecs will be making their 12th appearance at the Thunderbird Invite in the last 14 years. During that stretch, SDSU has recorded six top-five placements, including a trio of runner-up performances in 2009, 2011 and 2012.
Ree was the Aztecs' No. 1 finisher at the event a year ago, tying for the 14th position at 2-over 212, while Mendoza landed in the 39th spot (+7), followed by Song, who tied for 52nd (+10).
Along with Mickelson, other previous Thunderbird Invitational medalists of note include Scott Simpson (1975), Corey Pavin (1979), Bob Clampett (1980), Steve Jones (1981) David Sutherland (1987) and Paul Casey (2000).
Following this weekend's tournament, San Diego State will venture north to the Santa Cruz area to participate in its final event of the regular season at the Western Intercollegiate, April 11-13, at picturesque Pasatiempo Golf Club.