Men's Golf Takes On Another Challenging Field At Sun Devil Intercollegiate
April 12, 2000
UP NEXT: OSU competes in a field of 17 at the Sun Devil Intercollegiate in Tempe, Ariz.on Apr. 15-16.
TOURNAMENT: Arizona State hosts the 28th annual Sun Devil Intercollegiate at the par 72, 7027 yard Karsten Golf Course on the campus of ASU. Arizona State will look to defend its title this year, as will ASU's Jeff Quinney. Quinney, a graduate of South Eugene High School in Eugene, Ore., set the course record last year with a final round 62 that catapulted him to a 15-under 201 in the three-round tournament. The teams will play 36 holes on Saturday, followed by 18 on Sunday. Play begins both days at 7 a.m.
STARTING FIVE FOR SUN DEVIL INTERCOLLEGIATE: Tim Mickelson (Sr., San Diego, Calif.) Finished Western Intercollegiate on Apr. 3-4 at 3-over 213 to tie for 11th, good for second-best finish of the year ... 213 equaled season-low for three rounds ... has three top-15 finishes in his last four tournaments ... shot 218 at Duck, tied for 15th playing unattached ... shot 69 three times this year ... finished fourth at Taylor Made Intercollegiate in February with 1-under 213 ... after 21 rounds is averaging 73.7, good for third on team.
John Lepak (So., La Habra Heights, Calif.) Tied for 23rd at Western Intercollegiate on Apr. 3-4, shooting 7-over 217 with a low round of 71 ... first time in four tournaments Lepak did not break par in at least one round, has done so in five of eight tournaments this season ... tied for eighth at Duck Inv. Mar. 21 ... finished second at Southwestern Invitational Feb. 28-29 ... Tied season-low with second-round 68 in SW ... Leads team with 27 rounds and 72.7 average for the year ... five sub-par rounds this season ... has finished four of nine tournaments at even or better ... averages just 3.6 shots over par per tournament ... average finish of 17th ... owns third-lowest three round total in school history with a 209 at 1998-99 Pacific Coast Intercollegiate.
Anthony Arvidson (Jr., Beaverton, Ore.) Shot 9-over 219 to tie for 34th at Western Intercollegiate on Apr. 3-4 ... won the Duck Inv. Mar. 21 for the second time in his career ... has three career wins, two this year along with a second place ... averaging 73.5 over 24 rounds ... low of 68 ... averaging 71.8 strokes over last six rounds ... has broken par six times this season ... finished 34th or better in all but two of eight tournaments ... boasts second-round average of 72.1, lowest average of anyone on the team for any round ... shot even-par or better in five of eight second rounds, including three sub-par second rounds ... owns fourth lowest three round total in school history with a 210 at 1997-98 Duck Invitational, which he won ... owns a tie for the second and third-lowest scores in school history with a 66 and 67.
Dustin Wayne (Sr., Alameda, Calif.) Tied for 34th at Western Intercollegiate on Apr. 3-4 shooting 9-over 219 ... since regaining academic eligibility this spring, is shooting 73.1 over last six rounds ... shot 220 at the Duck in his first tournament since the fall, tying for 22nd ... five rounds under par so far ... shooting 74.0 after 15 rounds ... has two rounds of 67 in his career, tying him for third-lowest rounds in OSU history.
Eric Dahm: (Sr., Tualatin, Ore.) Dahm returns to the lineup after a week on the injured list ... shot 231 to finish tied for 67th at the Duck Invitational on Mar. 20-21 ... averaging 72.8 strokes in second round ... Overall average of 74.0 through 17.5 rounds ... low round of 70 came in Northwest Classic where he placed ninth after shooting a 1-over 217 ... Career low of 67 at 1998-99 Pacific Invitational tied for third-lowest score in OSU history
THE FIELD: The Beavers, 25th in the Apr. 6 MasterCard Collegiate Golf Rankings, face another tough field at ASU. Of the 17 teams competing, 14 are in the MasterCard top 50, but ASU will field a 'B' team, and the Swedish National Team will compete as well. Washington State is the only other team that does not appear in the top 50. Nine teams, including Oregon State, appear in the top 25. Here are the teams, with rankings in parentheses: Arizona State (4), Fresno State (8), UNLV (9), Arizona (11), Washington (15), New Mexico (17), USC (21), UCLA (23), Oregon State (25), Oregon (27), Oklahoma (33), TCU (35), Colorado State (39), California (46), Washington State, Swedish National Team, and Arizona State's 'B' team.
THE BEAVERS IN OTHER POLLS: OSU is ranked eighth in the Apr. 5 District VIII Coaches Poll, and 30th in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings. The Beavers have been as high as 22nd in the Golfstat rankings on Mar. 20. John Lepak is ranked highest in the MasterCard poll, at 58th. Lepak is 68 in the Golfweek rankings, and 77th in Golfstat.
HEAD COACH MIKE KETCHAM ON THE COURSE AND TOURNAMENT: "The Sun Devil will be a good tournament for us. Randy (ASU head coach Randy Lein) always fields a fantastic event, every year it's a great field. This is a good chance for us to go down and see the golf course because we'll be going back down a week later for Pac-10s, which will be on the same course.
"Four out of the five kids that are going down there, with the exception of Eric Dahm, have played the course before. This will be a good chance for Eric to see the golf course before the Pac-10 Championships.
"It's a good golf course for us. It's relatively flat, the greens are smooth, and they're not very undulated. It's a golf course on which I expect you will see some pretty low numbers.
"It's a lot like Trysting Tree Golf Course (OSU's home course), they're very similar links-style golf courses. Even though it's a links-style golf course, there are a lot of humps and mounds out there, so ball position off the tee is still a key. One of the strengths of our golf team is the ability to drive the ball.
"We look forward to the challenge. The weather has been absolutely awesome here the last few weeks and we've had some outstanding practices, so I'm looking for good things to happen."
LEADER OF THE PAC: Arizona State's Paul Casey slipped to No. 6 in this week's MasterCard rankings. Casey is the highest-ranked Pac-10 player in the country, followed by teammate Matt Jones at No. 18.
AT A GLANCE: A look at individual scoring averages, with rounds played in parentheses, best finish, and low round for the year so far:
Anthony Arvidson, 73.5 (24), 1st (Northwest Classic, Duck Invitational), 68
David Crowell (No longer on team), 75.5 (6), T21st (Pacific Invitational), 72
Eric Dahm, 74.0 (17.5), T7th (Pilot Spring Invitational), 70
Todd Deacon, 75.7 (11.5), T7th (Pilot Spring Invitational), 72
Sean Deacon, has not played.
Chance Holmes, 76.0 (11.5), 20th (Pilot Spring Invitational), 71 (twice)
Kyle Hudson, 74.4 (20.5), 1st (Pilot Spring Invitational), 66
Bryan Geiberger, 74.2 (18), T11th (Pepperdine Inv.), 69
Daren Grieg, has not played.
Brodie Jordan (no longer on team), 74.6 (3), T25th (NW Classic), 72
John Lepak, 72.7 (27), 2nd (Southwestern), 68 (three times)
Tim Mickelson, 73.7 (21), T4th (Taylor Made), 69 (three times)
David Stypula, has not played.
Dustin Wayne, 74.0 (15), T10th (NW Classic), 70 (two times)
COACHING STAFF: Mike Ketcham is in his fourth year as the director of the men's golf program, and he continues to build Oregon State into a national power.
Ketcham has put together one of the deepest teams in Oregon State history this year. His teams continue to experience success, as a result of expert teaching of the game's fundamentals, national recruiting, and effective communication.
Ketcham arrived in Corvallis after spending five years at San Jose State University. While heading up the Spartan program, the team made three appearances in the NCAA West Regionals and qualified for one NCAA Tournament. The program was ranked consistently in the top 25 during his tenure, and he was selected the Big West Conference Coach of the Year once.
The Ottumwa, Iowa native started his coaching career as the mentor of the Scottsdale Community college program in Arizona. He led the team to the National Junior College Athletic Association national championship both years (1993, '94) he was associated with the school. He was named the NJCAA Coach of the Year both seasons, and coachedeight NJCAA All-Americans. His teams compiled an 84-1 conference record over the two years.
Ketcham was a NJCAA All-american in 1985 at Odessa Junior College in Texas before beginning a two-year career at Arkansas. Ketcham played professionally on the U.S. Golf Tour, Asian Tour, and the Canadian Tour, in addition to going through the PGA Tour Qualifying school twice.
Brian Watts returned to Oregon State this year after five years in private business. Watts coached at OSU as an assistant during the 1996-97 and 1997-98 seasons. After playing on the Golden State Tour, Florida State Tour and the Canadian PGA Tour for four years, he brings back tremendous experience to the OSU program. He also worked as an assistant professional at the DeBell Golf Course in Burbank, Calif., and at Golf Classics of America in Beverly Hills and San Dimas.
Watts graduated from Western Oregon University in 1989 with a bachelor of science in physical education. He also attended Oregon State.
