Team looks to parlay unlikely berth into shot at national title
Weaker playing field improves outlook for squad at championships
MEN’S GOLF NCAA Championships May 30-June 2 All Day Durham, N.C.
By Pauline Vu
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
The upcoming men’s NCAA Golf Championships should be the most unpredictable in several years because the field is the most unlikely in several years.
Explain how it is that teams like No. 55 Pacific and No. 53 UC Irvine and No. 51 Oregon State made the cut for the tournament, which starts today, while powerhouses like No. 6 Texas and No. 13 USC and No. 15 TCU didn’t.
“You’d have to feel like it’s kind of a weak national field,” UCLA Head Coach Brad Sherfy said.
Heck, now even No. 38 UCLA has a chance.
When asked what he thought about his team making the tournament, junior co-captain Packer McLachlin looked taken aback.
“What are my thoughts on ‘making it?’” he asked. “I’m thinking about winning it. We’re not going there just to have fun. We’re going there because we deserve it and we want to go and win.”
It’s not as crazy as it sounds for a team that barely made West Regionals (though it played excellently there, earning a spot in nationals). The whole team points out the fact that they are peaking now – something reflected in Bruin scores in recent tournaments.
At the U.S. Intercollegiates, McLachlin and sophomore J.T. Kohut finished in the top 12; at Pac-10 Championships, McLachlin and sophomore Travis Johnson finished in the top 20; and at Regionals, freshman John Merrick finished sixth and even led the tournament for awhile. Freshman Steve Conway has also been a consistent contributor.
“We’re all hitting strides. At some point there’s a peak to this thing, and I think we’re starting to peak,” Sherfy said. “If we could all have personal bests, then we’re dangerous.”
And then there’s the whole issue of good teams unexpectedly getting knocked out in various regional tournaments. According to Sherfy, eight teams in the top 25 did not make nationals.
“Schools like that have been weeded out already,” Johnson said of highly-ranked teams. “‘Course if they’d made it they’d be a team to reckon with.”
But they didn’t, and now the Bruins have a chance that they couldn’t imagine having earlier in the season.
So believe it: UCLA is contending for an NCAA championship this week.
“We’re just trying to be the Cinderella story,” Johnson said.
“Maybe it’s just the stars are lining up in a certain way. Who knows?” McLachlin added with a laugh.
advertise
contact us
top of page