FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – After a fabulous late-season stretch, Stanford wasn't ready to go home.
Junior David Snyder buried match-deciding eight-foot par putt on the final hole – the par-4 ninth – to lift Stanford to a dramatic 3-2 quarterfinal victory against Wake Forest on Tuesday in the NCAA Championships.
"I just trusted what I've been doing all spring and fed off of our guys," said Snyder after his 1-up win against Lee Detmer. "Just wanted to make the putt for them. It was awesome."
Great recovery by @davidsnydergolf, who hooks third around trees at par-4 12th and wins hole.
— Stanford Men's Golf (@StanfordMGolf) May 28, 2019
Card up early, 3-1-1.#GoStanford pic.twitter.com/JRU4Vb2DHf
Reaching the semifinals for the first time since 2014, the sixth-seeded Cardinal faces second-seeded Vanderbilt in afternoon semifinals starting at 11:30 a.m. PT. Golf Channel will provide live coverage from 1-5 p.m. PT.
"Really proud of our guys," said Knowles Family Director of Men's Golf Conrad Ray. "They hung in there and were down most of the day. That back nine they really turned it around."
The Cardinal led early, then lost momentum midway through the front nine at windy and cloudy Blessings Golf Club. At one point, Stanford trailed in four of five matches and was on the ropes. Senior Brandon Wu was the only player with a comfortable advantage.
Cool and cloudy morning, but doesn't bother @bwu97, who nails opening drive at No. 10.#GoStanford pic.twitter.com/QxUGoDJTrg
— Stanford Men's Golf (@StanfordMGolf) May 28, 2019
Then it switched. Senior Isaiah Salinda fell 4-down to Eugenio Chacarra after nine and things looked bleak. But Salinda rolled in a long birdie putt at the par-4 1st hole (No. 10 in the match) to win the hole, then claimed 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 to take command.
"Sometimes it just takes one putt to drop," said Ray. "He made that and didn't look back. Isaiah had that look in his eye on the nine and it was fun to see a few putts drop."
In other quarterfinal matches, Vanderbilt beat Texas A&M, Oklahoma State beat SMU, and Texas beat Oklahoma. In the afternoon semifinals, Stanford meets Vanderbilt, while Oklahoma State faces Texas. Winners meet for the title on Wednesday.
Quarterfinal Results
Stanford 3, Wake Forest 2
Patrick def. Shimp, 1-up
Snyder def. Detmer, 1-up
Salinda def. Chacarro, 3 and 1
Wu def. Bae, 4 and 3
Young def. Tuleubayev, 5 and 4
Semifinal pairings
11:30 a.m. (PT) Salinda vs. Martin
11:40 a.m. Shimp vs. Augenstein
11:50 a.m. Wu vs. Davenport
12:00 p.m. Tuleubayev vs. Ott
12:10 p.m. Snyder vs. Gordon