Carlson Leads Beavs On Day Two At Pac-12?s
PULLMAN, Wash. – Junior Tyler Carlson fired one of the best rounds of his career on Tuesday, a 1-under 69, to help the Oregon State men’s golf team move one spot up the leaderboard into sixth place at the Pac-12 Championship.
The Beavers got solid play from all six golfers to move into the upper half of the 12-team field with a 25-over 361-357-357--1,075 at the par-70, 7,257-yard Palouse Ridge Golf Club.
No. 3 Arizona State leads with a 3-under 1,047, while No. 13 Stanford is second (6-over 1,056) and No. 16 USC is third (10-over 1,060). No. 12 Washington (23-over 1,073) is only two strokes ahead of Oregon State for fifth place.
The final 18 holes of the three-day, 72-tournament will begin at 8 a.m. on Wednesday and live scoring is available at golfstat.com. The Beavers will start at 8 a.m. on the first hole and be paired with Oregon and Washington.
| 6 | Oregon State | 361 | 357 | 357 | 1075 |
| T4 | Alex Franklin (1) | 68 | 67 | 71 | 206 |
| T17 | Kevin Murphy (2) | 68 | 72 | 72 | 212 |
| T31 | Tyler Carlson (4) | 75 | 73 | 69 | 217 |
| T47 | Conner Kumpula (5) | 74 | 75 | 73 | 222 |
| T47 | Jonas Liebich (6) | 76 | 71 | 75 | 222 |
| T56 | Brian Jung (3) | 79 | 74 | 72 | 225 |
“Starting the day on the par-5 10th hole was very difficult,” Oregon State head coach Jon Reehoorn said. “The 620-yard hole with an elevated tee shot into a 20 mile-per-hour wind and played very difficult. We got off to a bit of a slow start, but the guys did a really nice job of competing and getting the most out of their first nine holes in some very difficult conditions.
“For whatever reason, we just seem comfortable on the front nine, and as the wind died down a bit, the guys played very solidly on the final nine.
“I feel pretty good about where we are headed in the final round. The team knows they haven’t quite played their best and tomorrow will be a great opportunity to finish the season on a high note.”
After opening the championship with rounds of 75-73 on Monday, Carlson went birdie crazy on Tuesday, putting six red circles on his scorecard, to go with five bogeys, for a 1-under 69 that vaulted him 15 spots up the leaderboard into a tie for 31st place with a 7-over 217.
It was the fourth sub-par round of Carlson’s career and equaled the best since his freshman season. His other under-par rounds were a 3-under 68 at the Alister MacKenzie Invitational in the fall of 2012, a 2-under 70 at the Fresno State Lexus Classic in the spring of 2013 and a 1-under 69 at the Itani Quality Homes Collegiate this past fall.
“Growing up 30 miles from here (in Clarkson, Wash.) and having seen the course in a number of conditions was a nice advantage for Tyler today,” Reehoorn said. “He feels comfortable on the course in windy conditions. The difference from yesterday to today for him was that he made some putts.”
Senior Alex Franklin wasn’t as dominant in the third round as he was in the first two, but he remained in the top five after finishing the day with a 1-over 71. His 4-under 68-67-71--206 leaves him in a tie for fourth place and five strokes behind the clubhouse leader, Maverick McNealy of Stanford, who has an 9-under 65-68-68--201.
Only two Oregon State golfers have won the Pac-8/10/12 Championship since it began in 1958. Bob Allard shared it with two other players in 1969 and Scott Masingill won it outright in 1971. Alex Moore and Martin Trainer of USC finished the 2011 championship in a tie for first before Trainer won the title on the seventh sudden-death playoff hole.
Sophomore Kevin Murphy shot a 2-over 72 for the second straight round after opening the tournament with a 2-under 68 and is tied for 17th place with a 2-over 212. The Rogue River, Ore., native finished his first Pac-12 Tournament in a tie for 52nd place a year ago with a 20-over 308.
Junior Brian Jung, like Carlson, played very well on Tuesday after carding a 2-over 72 with one birdie and three bogeys. The third round score moved him seven spots up the leaderboard into a tie for 56th place with a 15-over 79-74-72--225.
Sophomore Conner Kumpula and freshman Jonas Liebich are both tied for 47th place at 12-over 222 with scores of 74-75-73 and 76-71-75, respectively.
