March 22, 2012
Barona Collegiate Cup Round One Results 
Golfstat.com Results
LAKESIDE, Calif. -- Northwestern officially is tied for eighth after one round of play at the Barona Collegiate Cup with the 16-team tournament currently under suspension late in the second round due to darkness.
Northwestern is tied with fellow Big Ten school Illinois at 2-under 358 after one round of play, three strokes behind seventh-place Saint Mary's (Calif.) and two shots in front of a 10th place tie between Arizona and Pepperdine.
The tournament is a 6 count 5 format, whereas most college tournaments see teams field squads of five and count the lowest four scores toward the team total each round. Thursday's second round will be completed at 9:30 a.m. CT tomorrow, Friday, March 23, before teams remain in the same pairings to play the final round.
Senior Eric Chun (Ansung City, South Korea/International Christian School) is in 12th place after one round of play at 4-under 68. He opened with a birdie at the 541-yard par-5 first after almost holing a pitch from in front of the green, then carded another on the second after hitting his approach to 15 feet and nailing the uphill putt. Chun's day went to 3-under following a second up-and-down par-5 birdie at the sixth, though he gave a stroke back at No. 7 for a 2-under 34 going out.
The senior then made birdies on three of his first five holes on the back nine to plunge to 5-under, eventually carding that 68.
Senior Sam Chien (San Diego, Calif./Mt. Carmel) got up-and-down from the bunker to birdie the opening par 5, then saved par at No. 2 following another up-and-down -- this one from high grass 50 yards off the green.
"There is nothing like a momentum saving par after a poor shot," head coach Pat Goss tweeted.
Chien went on to birdie the fourth, but found himself 1-over par following a bogey-double bogey combination on holes No. 6 and 7. He immediately clawed back to even par with a birdie at No. 8. On the back nine, Chien carded eight pars and a birdie at the 174-yard par-3 16th to turn in a 34th-place 1-under 71. "Sam hit some bad shots but hangs in there, keeps fighting, and shoots 71," Goss tweeted between rounds.
Sophomore Jack Perry (Santa Barbara, Calif./Santa Barbara) got off to a slow start Thursday morning, finding himself 2-over through four before settling in to play 3-under par golf with 11 pars and three birdies the rest of the way for an opening 1-under 71, tying him with Chien in 34th position.
Freshman Bennett Lavin (Deerfield, Ill./Deerfield) got to red numbers early Thursday morning on the par-5 6th, hitting a great cut hybrid with the ball above his feet on his second shot to set up a birdie. Three-straight bogeys around the turn, including two 3-putts, shot him up to 2-over par before he recovered with a fist-pump-inducing birdie at the 12th and a beautiful wedge approach spun back off the slope at the 13th for another birdie. Lavin was not bothered by a 20-minute wait to tee off at the par-5 17th, making birdie to again get into red figures, but a sloppy double bogey at No. 18 left him with a 55th-place 1-over 73 in the opening round.
Junior Nick Losole (Scottsdale, Ariz./Scottsdale Notre Dame) struggled to 4-over par after 10 holes during the morning round, but got one stroke back with a great spinny wedge approach at the par-5 13th that set up a birdie. He gave that stroke back at No. 15 before making birdie on his final hole of the morning to card a 3-over 75 that placed him 78th in the field.
Sophomore John Callahan (Hinsdale, Ill./Benet Academy) struggled to a 12-over 84 in the morning round to complete NU's team lineup.
Playing as an individual, freshman Matthew Negri (El Cajon, Calif./Grossmont) made a bogey on his first hole before surging into contention with four front nine birdies, including three in a row from holes No. 7 through 9. He completed the morning tied for 16th at 3-under 69.
••••••
Be the first to know what's going on with the 'Cats -- Follow @NU_Sports on Twitter, become a fan of Northwestern Athletics on Facebook! and subscribe to the NU Sports Express e-newsletter to receive the latest news, schedule updates and video and to interact with NU. For more information on following specific Northwestern teams online, visit our Social Media page!
News
Roster
Schedule
