UW men lose at NCAA golf championship
Published 11:31 pm Friday, June 4, 2010
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Eugene Wong doesn’t mind taking on a little pressure on behalf of his Oregon teammates.
How about the pressure of having to win his round of match play at the 18th hole by holding off his fellow Pac-10 co-player of the year and the Ben Hogan Award winner, Washington’s Nick Taylor?
“My heart was definitely racing,” Wong said. “I just tried to get as close as I could to give myself a good chance.”
With thunder rumbling at a distance and rain sprinkling on the course, Wong nearly sank a 45-foot putt on the 18th green, and he and Taylor both made par to preserve Wong’s 1-up margin. The victory advanced Oregon to the NCAA Division I semifinals with a 3-2 win at The Honors Course on Friday.
Today, the fifth-seeded Ducks face top seed Oklahoma State, which cruised to a 4-1 win over Stanford. No. 2 Florida State defeated No. 7 Texas Tech 4-1 and will meet No. 6 Augusta State, a 3-2 winner over No. 3 Georgia Tech.
Jack Dukeminier won the first match for Oregon 1-up over Charlie Hughes, and Darren Wallace answered with a 2-and-1 win for Washington over Isaiah Telles. Oregon’s Andrew Vijarro posted a 2-and-1 win over Richard Lee, and Washington’s Chris Williams defeated Daniel Miernicki by the same margin, setting up the showdown between Wong and Taylor.
Taylor took a 1-up lead after grabbing a birdie on the third hole and held the margin until Wong shot a birdie on the ninth hole and Taylor bogeyed the 10th. The pair matched pars and birdies the rest of the way.
The Memorial
DUBLIN, Ohio — Rickie Fowler ran off three straight birdies late in his round for a 6-under 66 to tie the 36-hole record at the Memorial Tournament and take a three-shot lead over Justin Rose into the weekend at soggy Muirfield Village.
Fowler was at 13-under 131, matching the record set by Scott Hoch in 1987.
Defending champion Tiger Woods birdied three of the opening five holes, then ran off three straight birdies on his front nine to offset the few mistakes for a 69. He was at 3-under 141, 10 shots behind.
Phil Mickelson, who has another chance to become No. 1 with a victory, shot 71 that put him at 6-under 138 and seven shots behind.
Principal Charity Classic
WEST DES MOINES, Iowa — Tommy Armour III matched the Glen Oaks record with an 8-under 63 to take a three-stroke lead in the Principal Charity Classic. Dan Forsman and Russ Cochran opened the Champions Tour event with 66s, and Bernhard Langer and Nick Price topped a group at 67.
Wales Open
NEWPORT, Wales — Germany’s Marcel Siem shot a 4-under 67 for a share of the second-round lead with Australia’s Andrew Doht in the Wales Open at Celtic Manor. Doht shot a 70 to match Siem at 6-under 136 on The Twenty Ten Course, the site of the Ryder Cup matches in October.
