Men's Golf preview: NCAA East Regional Championship
May 19, 2010
NEXT UP: Texas holds the No. 2 seed at this week’s NCAA East Regional Championship, one of six NCAA regional events across the country this weekend. The low five teams and low individual not on one of the advancing teams will advance to the 2010 NCAA Championships set for June 1-6 in Chattanooga, Tenn. WHERE: The Golf Course at Yale (par 70, 6,749 yards) – New Haven, Conn. WHEN: Thursday, May 20 through Saturday, May 22 (18 holes each day) – Tee times TBA LIVE SCORING: http://www.golfstatresults.com/public/index.cfm?tournament_id=1852 TOURNAMENT FIELD LAST TIME OUT: Texas placed third at the Big 12 Championship at Whispering Pines Golf Club in Trinity, Texas. TEXAS STARTERS
Dylan Frittelli (So. - Pretoria, South Africa) • Big 12 Conference Player of the Year • named a 2010 Ben Hogan Award semifinalist on April 14 • the Big 12 Player of the Month for March • second straight NCAA regional appearance (T-23rd at the 2009 Austin Regional) • boasts top-four finishes in four of his last six events, including a win at the National Invitational Tournament in March • team-leading 71.66 stroke average Lance Lopez (Sr. – Missouri City, Texas) Cody Gribble (Fr. – Dallas, Texas) Charlie Holland (Sr. – Dallas, Texas) SEASON NOTES FRITTELLI, GRIBBLE EARN BIG 12 POSTSEASON HONORS The announcement marked the first time Texas swept the player of the year and newcomer of the year awards since 1999, when David Gossett won both. Frittelli became UT’s third Big 12 player of the year in men’s golf and the first since Jason Hartwick in 2004. Gribble is Texas’ first Big 12 newcomer of the year since 2003, when Matt Rosenfeld won the honor. Texas landed three student-athletes on the All-Big 12 squad for the first time since 2003 The player of the year and newcomer of the year awards are automatically selected as the highest-ranked individual in the Golfweek/Sagarin performance index following the conference championship. Frittelli secured top-10 individual finishes in eight of his 11 events this season, which includes a victory at the National Invitational Tournament in March and four additional top-five finishes. Gribble landed five top-five individual finishes thus far during his standout freshman season. He secured top-three finishes in first three collegiate events last fall. Gribble boasts runner-up finishes at the Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate (October) and the Puerto Rico Classic (February) and two additional third-place showings. Hudson earned his second career All-Big 12 selection after landing five top-five individual finishes during his junior campaign. Hudson registered his second career collegiate victory in February at the Mauna Lani Invitational. He added additional top-five finishes at the National Invitational Tournament in March and at the Big 12 Championship at Whispering Pines. Hudson previously earned All-Big 12 honors as a freshman in 2008. The All-Big 12 Team was identified by listing the top-10 highest-ranked golfers in the league according to the Golfweek/Sagarin performance index. FRITTELLI NAMED BEN HOGAN AWARD SEMIFINALIST Frittelli joined Oklahoma State’s Kevin Tway and Peter Uihlein as Hogan Award semifinalists from the Big 12 Conference. The other seven semifinalists were Alabama’s Bud Cauley, Stanford’s David Chung, Georgia’s Harris English and Russell Henley, Wake Forest’s Brendan Gielow, Augusta State’s Patrick Reed and Washington’s Nick Taylor. Texas-Ex Matt Rosenfeld was UT’s most recent Hogan Award semifinalist in 2005. Texas’ Jeff Fahrenbruch won the Hogan Award in 1997. Frittelli was not selected as a finalist for the award. FRITTELLI WINS NATIONAL INVITATIONAL TOURNAMENT Frittelli, who trailed TCU's Johan de Beer and Baylor's Joakim Mikkelsen by one shot heading into the final round, finished at 6-under par for the 54-hole event, as he outdistanced Colorado State's Bryce Hanstad and Baylor's Mikkelsen. It marked the second victory for a Longhorn this season and the first for Frittelli since February 2009, when he captured the Puerto Rico Classic. TEXAS CLAIMS PUERTO RICO CLASSIC Texas took first place at 42-under par in the 15-team event, six shots ahead of No. 1 Oklahoma State. Clemson took third at 21-under par, and Northwestern placed fourth at 1-under par. Georgia Tech rounded out the top-five at 9-under par. UT freshman Cody Gribble placed second at 14-under par, three shots behind tournament medalist Kevin Tway of Oklahoma State, and sophomore Dylan Frittelli added a fourth-place finish at 11-under par. With junior Bobby Hudson tying for seventh at 8-under par, Texas landed three players in the final top-10 for the first time since March 2008 at the Fresno State Lexus Classic. The victory was the Longhorns’ first since November 2008, when Texas captured the 19-team Turtle Bay Collegiate Invitational. HUDSON CLAIMS MAUNA LANI INVITATIONAL Hudson played spotless golf in the final round and scattered six birdies. Hudson began the round at No. 4 and went on a torrid run that commenced at No. 6, where he birdied four of five holes before adding two more at Nos. 13 and 15. His 6-under 66 enabled him to finish at 7-under for the tournament, one shot ahead of second-place Brooks Koepka of Florida State. Hudson's previous college victory came at UT's Morris Williams Intercollegiate in 2008, when he set a new 18-hole course record at The University of Texas Golf Club with a 65 in the final round. His performance later earned him a selection as the Golfweek National Player of the Week. GRIBBLE ENJOYING STANDOUT FRESHMAN SEASON Gribble opened the spring season with a second-place finish in Puerto Rico, as he helped the Horns to the team title at the Puerto Rico Classic hosted by Purdue. He notched a fifth-place finish at his next event, the Southern Highlands Collegiate Masters and added an additional top-10 finish last month when he tied for eighth at the Aggie Invitational. |
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