April 28, 2013
LOS ANGELES, Calif. - After a solid spring campaign with a victory at the U.S. Intercollegiate, Stanford competes in the men's golf Pac-12 Championship on Monday through Wednesday at the Los Angeles Country Club.
This 72-hole event tees off at 8 a.m. (PT) all three days off No. 1 and No. 10. On Monday, the second round will tee off at 1 p.m.
LA Country Club plays approximately 6,300 yards and to a par of 70.
Andrew Yun, the reigning Pac-12 Champion, will be on a field that boasts five top-11 teams and 20 of the top-85 players in the nation.
"It's going to take perseverance and a great short game for me to defend my title this week," said Yun, who was recently named the Pac-12 Men's Golf Scholar-Athlete of the Year. "There is a cliché that defense wins championships. I believe that a good short game is like a good defense."
No. 8 (Golfweek) Stanford is joined by top-ranked California, No. 5 UCLA, No. 7 Washington and No. 11 USC.
Rounding out the 12-team field are Oregon, Arizona State, Oregon State, Arizona, Colorado, Washington State and Utah.
"The LA Country Club was designed by George Thomas who is the same architect of the Stanford Golf Course," said The Knowles Family Director of Golf Conrad Ray. "We're excited that we might see some similarities and be familiar with some contouring. It's a long course, so there's a lot of strategy in terms of hitting your golf ball in the proper place off the tee and around the greens to create the most opportunities."
Ray starts a lineup featuring sophomore Patrick Rodgers, junior Cameron Wilson, senior Yun, freshman David Boote, senior Steve Kearney and junior Shane Lebow.
Rodgers, who comes off a ninth-place finish at the Western Intercollegiate, has had six top-10 finishes in nine events including three season titles and five overall. He holds a 70.5 stroke average in 27 rounds of competition and is a Ben Hogan Award semifinalist.
"Patrick plays tough golf courses and manages his golf ball well," Ray said. "He relies on his strong short game so that should all bode well for him."
Yun, a Byron Nelson Award finalist, has had two top-10 finishes this spring, including a third-place showing at the 2013 U.S. Intercollegiate.
"My mantra for this tournament is to have fun," Yun said. "I tend to lose patience as the tournament wears on because frustrations can build on each other. So after every shot, I'll tell myself to smile and talk with my playing competitors because talking helps me relax. After every round, I'll emphasize the positive things I have done so that I can utilize my strengths as the tournament progresses."
"Andrew will be up for a very good tournament," Ray continued. "He's a great putter and chipper with the golf ball and with the course you have to get up and down a few times to make par."
The rest of the Cardinal is rounding out in good form.
Wilson's ball striking is strong. Boote plays consistently and makes a lot of pars. Kearney remains a solid contributor and Lebow, after a nice few rounds of qualifying, made the sixth slot.
The Cardinal clinched the inaugural Pac-12 title in 1960 and has since won the conference championships in 1968, 1970, 1974, 1977, 1992 and 1994.
Stanford's Pac-12 Champion alumni have been Pete Choate (1960 and 1962), S. Adelman (1969), Mike Peck (1977 and 1978), Jack Skilling (1980), Don Walsworth (1986), Christian Cevaer (1989 and 1992), Tiger Woods (1996), Jim Seki (2002) and Andrew Yun (2012).
"Last year I was hitting the ball extremely well coming into the Pac-12s," Yun said. "I just needed to find my putting touch. I remember switching grips to a cross-handed grip in the middle of my first round and it all clicked. I made a lot of putts for the rest of the week."
"I also remember an important game-changer in the final round," Yun continued. "I was one over after three early bogeys. On the eighth hole, I hit a pitching wedge from about 120 yards to a left pin. It landed a couple of feet in front of the pin and then hit the pin and dropped for an eagle! That changed the momentum and gave me the confidence to finish strong. I remember telling myself to stay aggressive. I didn't want to put my foot off the pedal until the last putt dropped."
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