May 31, 2008
Tournament Recap - Day 4
Quotes From Day 4 in PDF Format 
Purdue's Tournament Central Website
Blog: Stanford at the NCAA Championships
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The sixth-ranked Stanford men's golf team came up just short of being the only team in nearly 20 years to repeat as national champions, as the No. 4 UCLA Bruins bested the Cardinal by just one stroke to capture the 2008 NCAA Men's Golf Team Championship today at the Kampen Course of the Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex on the campus of Purdue University. Stanford stroked a cumulative 43-over-par 1195 to finish as the 2008 NCAA Men's Golf Championships Runner-Up.
Heading into the final holes, the Cardinal, along with Clemson, USC, and UCLA, was poised to finish as one of the top-4 teams. Stanford completed their round first, shooting a 14-over-par 302 in a strong wind from the west, and had to play the waiting game as the Tigers, Trojans, and Bruins made up the five groups following the Cardinal.
Clemson played itself into fourth place, while it looked as if UCLA and USC were dueling for the top two spots. However, the Trojans made too many errors on the last few holes and finished one stroke behind Stanford, who sat watching and waiting at the No. 18 green. UCLA's Kevin Chappell, who almost double-bogeyed No. 17, then sealed the victory on No. 18 for the Bruins as he two-putted his way to both a team and individual title.
"I was thinking about four or five guys playing those last three holes and if you can play those holes a couple over, and based on what the scores were it seemed like 40 or 41 [over-par] was going to have a really good chance," said The Knowles Family Director of Men's Golf, Conrad Ray. "We needed a little help there at the end and didn't get it, but hats off to UCLA. They played solid all week and really did it when they needed to."
"We shot the lowest round of the day, and we had a chance, and that's all you can really ask for," added Ray.
Freshman Sihwan Kim fired the best round of any individual on the day, eagling No. 9 and scoring a one-under-par 71. Kim finished in a tie for fourth with Oklahoma State's Rickie Fowler with a six-over-par 294. At the completion of the tournament, Kim was awarded First Team Ping All-American honors.
"Sihwan has been our horse all year," praised Ray. "He's shot a lot of good rounds and some rounds when we really needed him and today was one of those times obviously."
"This course, without the wind still plays pretty hard, but with the wind, with these gusts, these constant 20 mile-per-hour winds, it plays really tough," offered Kim "Although it rained a lot yesterday, the greens were rolling well and it was really dry, so that was nice to see."
Following the tournament, Kim was named to both College Golf Coaches Association's (CGCA) All-America First Team as well as to the All-America Freshman Team.
Senior Rob Grube completed an outstanding career with the Cardinal today, finishing in a three-way tie for 18th place with a 12-over-par 300. Grube was instrumental in the Cardinal's high finish and performed well throughout the tournament.
"I'm really disappointed [we didn't win]," said Grube. "We were trying to prepare ourselves for a playoff, because that was a possibility especially with how hard the guys played. But you know, UCLA played really well, and that's how it goes. It's good to see a Pac-10 team win."
Junior Dodge Kemmer jumped 17 places to tie for 23rd, after having an exceptional 35-stroke performance on the back-nine today. Kemmer finished with a 15-over-par 303. Sophomore Jordan Cox finished in a tie for 43rd, with a 19-over-par 307. Cox's best round came on the second day, where he fired a one-under-par 71. Freshman Steve Ziegler ended in a tie for 52nd with a 21-over-par 309. Ziegler had the best round for the Cardinal on the first day of competition.
Also, the Pac-10 conference showed its dominance at the tournament, with conference teams finishing in the top-three spots, and also boasting another top-10 team in Washington, who took ninth place outright.
Stanford finished the season with nine top-five and two top-10 performances in 12 tournaments.
2008 NCAA Men's Golf Championships
Purdue University - West Lafayette, Ind.
Kampen Course - Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex
Final Results
2 Stanford University
+43 F 309 288 296 302 1195
T4 Sihwan Kim
+6 F 77 72 74 71 294
T18 Rob Grube
+12 F 78 69 73 80 300
T23 Dodge Kemmer
+15 F 78 76 74 75 303
T43 Jordan Cox
+19 F 79 71 75 82 307
T52 Steve Ziegler
+21 F 76 79 78 76 309
CGCA First Team All-America
Sihwan Kim - Stanford
Jonas Blixt - Florida State
Jorge Campillo - Indiana
Kevin Chappell - UCLA
Rickie Fowler - Oklahoma State
Rory Hie - USC
Jamie Lovemark - USC
Joel Sjoholm - Georgia State
Webb Simpson - Wake Forest
Michael Thompson - Alabama
CGCA All Freshman Team
Sihwan Kim - Stanford
Harris English - Georgia
Rickie Fowler - Oklahoma State
Russell Henley - Georgia
Kevin O'Connell - North Carolina
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May 30, 2008
Third Round Results in PDF Format
Quotes From Day 3 in PDF Format
Tournament Recap - Day 3
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The sixth-ranked Stanford men's golf team moved up to fourth place on the leaderboard today at the 2008 NCAA Championships after 54 holes of play at the Kampen Course of the Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex on the campus of Purdue University. The teams that teed off in the morning were able to complete their rounds, while the teams in the afternoon suffered two delays due to severe weather, and eventually a tornado warning in Tippecanoe County, Ind., where Purdue is located. Third round play will be completed Saturday morning.
Final results for the third round cannot be produced since the round is not completely over, but Stanford's fourth-place position will most likely stand to the end of the round with a total score of a 29-over-par 893. The Cardinal shot eight-over-par today on a blustery day in West Lafayette, Ind. and are only five strokes behind first place fifth-ranked UCLA. Top-ranked USC and No. 10 Clemson are tied for second at a cumulative 27-over-par.
"The Pac-10 is the strongest it has ever been in golf," said the Knowles Family Director of Men's Golf, Conrad Ray. "I think that the players that we have in the conference and their ability to play under all conditions, it's a positive thing. You know we were kind of griping about it out west having the windiest spring that I can remember at Stanford. Every tournament we've played this spring we've played in the wind. So I think that is what you are seeing on the leaderboard, we see a lot of those teams out west, and I don't think it's a coincidence that you are seeing the Pac-10 schools play well in the wind."
"We're doing well, another one under our belt," added Ray. "I tell you it's a marathon not a sprint. Today, definitely, on the back side it was tough out there. But we're excited about tomorrow and about the opportunity, guys really played a solid round. I'm happy for them, they really gutted it out. We saw a lot of six-footers for par and that's what you need to do in these conditions."
Senior Rob Grube still leads for the Cardinal, and is tied for ninth place after firing a four-over-par 220 after three rounds. Freshman Sihwan Kim is next in line for Stanford, and is tied for 17th with a seven-over-par 223.
"Each day I've felt more comfortable and more confident in where I wanted to leave my ball, and what kind of shot I wanted to hit to get it there, and I'm sure it will be better tomorrow," said Grube of his play today.
"Yesterday was perfect conditions and today was really hard. Especially the last 13 holes, the wind increased in velocity a lot, it was a lot more difficult than yesterday. Yesterday, all you had to think about was where you wanted your ball to go and today you had to think about where you wanted your ball to go, how it was going to get there, what the wind was going to do to it and if it was going to gust. It was a whole different ball game today."
Stanford will try to defend their national title tomorrow as they have most likely earned a top-15 finish for the right to play in the final round.
"That's the whole reason for our existence really [, to win a national championship]," added Grube. "It's special and it validates a lot of hard work and the vision we had beginning in September. It means a lot and this is what we worked hard for and hopefully we can capture it."
"The best team is going to win this week," offered Ray. "It may not be the best ball-striking team but it will be the team who handles it the best mentally."
The third round will resume with a 7 a.m. shotgun start. The start of tomorrow's fourth round is still to be determined, but is tentatively scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. ET and will immediately follow the completion of the third round and any necessary tiebreakers. Fourth round pairing sheets with the revised tee times will be distributed on site at the conclusion of the third round. Stanford will likely be in one of the first groups to tee off in the final round. For current scores, please visit GolfStat. Live streaming complete with commentary for tomorrow's play can be found here from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m ET.
2008 NCAA Men's Golf Championships
Purdue University - West Lafayette, Ind.
Kampen Course - Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex
Through Third Round Results
4 Stanford University
+29309288296893
T9 Rob Grube
+4 786973220
T17 Sihwan Kim
+7777274223
T27 Jordan Cox
+9797175225
T54 Dodge Kemmer
+12 787674228
T96 Steve Ziegler
+17767978233
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May 29, 2008
Complete Results Through The Second Round in PDF Format
Tournament Recap - Day 2
Quotes From Day 2 in PDF Format
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The sixth-ranked Stanford men's golf team improved to an eighth place standing on the leaderboard after shooting an even-par 288 today on the Kampen Course of the Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex on the campus of Purdue University. With one round left to qualify for Saturday's fourth and final round, the Cardinal are cumulatively 21-over-par with a total of 597 and are eight strokes back of leader No. 10 Clemson after 36 holes. Stanford must remain one of the best 15 teams at the tournament in order to advance to the fourth round.
"Today was good," said The Knowles Family Director of Men's Golf, Conrad Ray. "Guys hung in there and I saw a lot of guys playing smart and hitting it to the middle of the green and two-putting for par, which is a pretty good way to do it out here."
The warm, sunny day with calm winds no doubt helped teams today, as it made the almost 7,500-yard links a little easier to play. Without a strong breeze, players were able to put the ball on the fairway more often than finding themselves in the thick and treacherous rough. Scores across the board were significantly closer to par when compared with yesterday's posts. The Cardinal, along with Clemson who also went par for the day, shot the two best rounds of any team today. The next best score came from No. 49 Washington, who shot two-over-par.
"I think in our meeting last night, the vibe was really positive," added Ray. "I felt like the guys, we all kind of understood that the back-nine is the hardest nine and they may have some trouble. We played the front-nine great yesterday and just hit a few balls out of play and it got away from us a little bit. We talked a bit last night about how our goal was just to get past through this back-nine, and we were able to do that."
"It helps when you can get one or two guys to step up, and today Rob [Grube] did it. I'm sure the rest of the week someone else will take that on as well."
No. 26 senior Rob Grube recorded the best outing for the Cardinal today, shooting a three-under-par 69. Grube recorded four birdies and just one bogey. Cumulatively, Grube has stroked a three-over-par 147. He is currently tied for 13th place with four other golfers.
"I hit it really well today, so it was pretty low stress," said Grube. "I hit 15 greens and a lot of fairways, which around this place is really nice. The rough is really penal. I hit some good putts, I made all the ones I should have but I definitely left some out there, but that's going to happen."
Sixth-ranked freshman Sihwan Kim and sophomore Jordan Cox are close behind Grube, with Kim tied for 23rd with eight other golfers at five-over-par 149 and Cox tied for 32nd with 12 other players at six-over-par 150.
Tomorrow, the Cardinal will tee off at the first hole at 7:47 a.m. and will be paired with third-ranked Georgia and No. 27 Kent State. Action can be followed live on GolfStat and on a webcast of holes 1, 2, 17 and 18 through a link on GolfStat from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. ET.
2008 NCAA Men's Golf Championships
Purdue University - West Lafayette, Ind.
Kampen Course - Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex
Through Second Round Results
8 Stanford University
+21 309 288 597
T13 Rob Grube
+3 78 69 147
T24 Sihwan Kim
+5 77 72 149
T32 Jordan Cox
+6 79 71 150
T70 Dodge Kemmer
+10 78 76 154
T85 Steve Ziegler
+11 76 79 155
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May 28, 2008
Complete First Round Results in PDF Format
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The sixth-ranked Stanford men's golf team completed the first round of the 2008 NCAA Championships today at the Kampen Course of the Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex on the Purdue University campus. The Cardinal are in a four-way tie for 12th place with No. 19 Texas A&M, No. 42 Middle Tennessee, and second-ranked Alabama.
The afternoon session's tee times were delayed 30 minutes today, but it didn't seem to affect the Cardinal, as it barreled out of the gates to the top-spot on the leaderboard, a place they held for most of the front-nine.
Unfortunately, the back-nine of the difficult par-72, 7,431-yard course complicated things for Stanford, as they slipped to 12th place, finishing with a 21-over-par 309 after 18 holes.
"I think today was okay, we had a great front-nine and then we struggled a little bit on the back, but the back is the harder side of the two," commented The Knowles Family Director of Men's Golf and Head Coach Conrad Ray. "We got off to a really hot start, I think we were leading for part of the day, and then kind of came back to the field. It's a long week and we had a lot of good things to think about today and a lot of positive shots. We just have to do a little better tomorrow."
"The golf course is really good, it's definitely a challenge," added Ray. "It's probably the hardest course I've seen for the NCAA Championship. It's really the story of the week. The rough is thick and you can hit it just off the fairway and not have much of a shot."
Stanford has two more rounds to qualify for the fourth and final round on Saturday. The Cardinal need to finish in the top half of the leaderboard after 54 holes in order to have a shot to repeat as national champions.
Freshman Steve Ziegler was the top performer for Stanford on the day, shooting a four-over-par 76. Fellow freshman, sixth-ranked Sihwan Kim, finished the day with the second best Cardinal performance with a five-over-par 77.
"It was a tough day," said Kim. "I was hitting the ball well, but my putting wasn't really following along. The greens are fast and very undulated, so it's very hard to putt. It could have been a lot better, but that's just the way golf goes sometimes."
After finishing at approximately 7:45 p.m., Stanford will have a quick turnaround, as they will begin the second round tomorrow at 8:07 a.m. when Ziegler tees off on the 10th hole.
2008 NCAA Men's Golf Championships
Purdue University - West Lafayette, Ind.
Kampen Course - Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex
First Round Results
T12 Stanford University
+21 309 309
T40 Steve Ziegler
+4 76 76
T53 Sihwan Kim
+5 77 77
T70 Dodge Kemmer
+6 78 78
T70 Rob Grube
+6 78 78
T87 Jordan Cox
+7 79 79