Sunday, May 2
Irvine, CA
10:50 a.m.
at
Big West Conference Championship
With seven rounds of par or better and a 74.3 scoring average this season, Austin Liu leads Cal Poly into the 2021 Big West Conference Men's Golf Championship at the La Quinta Country Club.
Cal Poly Seeks First Big West Men's Golf Title in 15 Years
4/29/2021 4:41:00 PM | Men's Golf
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. -- Seeking its first Big West Conference championship in men's golf in 15 years, Cal Poly will compete in the 2021 Big West Conference Championship on Sunday through Tuesday at the La Quinta Country Club in the Palm Springs area.
First-year Mustang head coach Phil Rowe will take junior Tanner Podres, sophomore Will Draper and freshmen Austin Liu, Joey Zambri and Luke Adam to the 54-hole event on the 7,006-yard par-72 course.
Cal State Fullerton is the defending Big West champion.
"Men's golf would enjoy bringing another Big West championship home to San Luis Obispo," said Rowe. "We will add it to the trophy cabinet at our new Mustang Golf Academy clubhouse alongside the women's championship title we brought back last week.
"There is a lot of momentum surrounding our programs at this time for many reasons and we are grateful for the opportunity to go out there and see if we can keep the charge going!" Rowe added.
Cal Poly competed in seven spring tournaments, placing third in the Orange County Collegiate Classic at Coto de Caza and ninth at the Duck Invitational in Eugene, Oregon.
Liu and Adam both averaged 74.3 strokes in the spring.
Liu has carded seven rounds of par or better, including a 67 and a 69, and his best finish was a tie for sixth place in the Orange County Collegiate Classic. Adam recorded a 69 in the El Macero Classic among his five rounds of par or better and placed 11th in the Orange County Collegiate Classic and 18th in the El Macero Classic.
Podres averaged 75.2 strokes per round while Zambri and Draper both compiled 75.5 scoring averages.
"We'll aim to play 'like winners,' " said Rowe, "how we would if we were in the lead from the beginning. Even if the stats are against us, there's something about playing that way that would give us the best chance of contending.
"That's the vibe I'll be looking for, continuing from the low rounds we've posted at home, continuing to hit our targets and make our key putts," Rowe added.
With three of the five lowest scorers in the conference, Long Beach State is favored to capture its first Big West title since 2004. Long Beach State is ranked No. 88 in Golfstat.com's team rankings, with UC Davis at No. 90 and Cal Poly 129th.
"Based on results in the tournaments we have played alongside UC Davis and Long Beach State, those two teams will be favorites," said Rowe.
Long Beach State senior Hunter Epson owns the lowest scoring average in the Big West this season at 70.6 and is ranked No. 139 in Golfstat.com's NCAA Division I individual rankings. Teammate Clay Seeber, a sophomore, has a 72.0 scoring average and sophomore Isaac Rodea 72.3.
Sam He of UC Riverside has compiled a 72.3 scoring average and Thomas Hutchison of UC Davis is fifth in the conference at 72.6.
In the 2019 Big West finals at the Wailua Golf Club in Lihue, Hawai'i, Hutchison was second and Epson placed in a tie for fifth. The 2020 event was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cal Poly last won the Big West title in 2006, led by Travis Bertoni, who won the 2005 conference championship and placed second in 2006. Only other Mustang to claim the Big West individual title was Justin De Los Santos in 2015 at the San Luis Obispo Country Club.
After a practice round Saturday at La Quinta, Cal Poly, expected to be seeded third in the field of nine teams, tees off with No. 1 Long Beach State and No. 2 UC Davis on Sunday at 10:30 a.m. Monday's tee times range from 10:30 a.m. to 12:50 p.m. with Tuesday's times set for 8 to 9:30 a.m. from both the first and 10th tees.
No spectators will be granted entrance to La Quinta Country Club in accordance with current COVID-19 guidelines. Live stats will be available here.
First-year Mustang head coach Phil Rowe will take junior Tanner Podres, sophomore Will Draper and freshmen Austin Liu, Joey Zambri and Luke Adam to the 54-hole event on the 7,006-yard par-72 course.
Cal State Fullerton is the defending Big West champion.
"Men's golf would enjoy bringing another Big West championship home to San Luis Obispo," said Rowe. "We will add it to the trophy cabinet at our new Mustang Golf Academy clubhouse alongside the women's championship title we brought back last week.
"There is a lot of momentum surrounding our programs at this time for many reasons and we are grateful for the opportunity to go out there and see if we can keep the charge going!" Rowe added.
Cal Poly competed in seven spring tournaments, placing third in the Orange County Collegiate Classic at Coto de Caza and ninth at the Duck Invitational in Eugene, Oregon.
Liu and Adam both averaged 74.3 strokes in the spring.
Liu has carded seven rounds of par or better, including a 67 and a 69, and his best finish was a tie for sixth place in the Orange County Collegiate Classic. Adam recorded a 69 in the El Macero Classic among his five rounds of par or better and placed 11th in the Orange County Collegiate Classic and 18th in the El Macero Classic.
Podres averaged 75.2 strokes per round while Zambri and Draper both compiled 75.5 scoring averages.
"We'll aim to play 'like winners,' " said Rowe, "how we would if we were in the lead from the beginning. Even if the stats are against us, there's something about playing that way that would give us the best chance of contending.
"That's the vibe I'll be looking for, continuing from the low rounds we've posted at home, continuing to hit our targets and make our key putts," Rowe added.
With three of the five lowest scorers in the conference, Long Beach State is favored to capture its first Big West title since 2004. Long Beach State is ranked No. 88 in Golfstat.com's team rankings, with UC Davis at No. 90 and Cal Poly 129th.
"Based on results in the tournaments we have played alongside UC Davis and Long Beach State, those two teams will be favorites," said Rowe.
Long Beach State senior Hunter Epson owns the lowest scoring average in the Big West this season at 70.6 and is ranked No. 139 in Golfstat.com's NCAA Division I individual rankings. Teammate Clay Seeber, a sophomore, has a 72.0 scoring average and sophomore Isaac Rodea 72.3.
Sam He of UC Riverside has compiled a 72.3 scoring average and Thomas Hutchison of UC Davis is fifth in the conference at 72.6.
In the 2019 Big West finals at the Wailua Golf Club in Lihue, Hawai'i, Hutchison was second and Epson placed in a tie for fifth. The 2020 event was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cal Poly last won the Big West title in 2006, led by Travis Bertoni, who won the 2005 conference championship and placed second in 2006. Only other Mustang to claim the Big West individual title was Justin De Los Santos in 2015 at the San Luis Obispo Country Club.
After a practice round Saturday at La Quinta, Cal Poly, expected to be seeded third in the field of nine teams, tees off with No. 1 Long Beach State and No. 2 UC Davis on Sunday at 10:30 a.m. Monday's tee times range from 10:30 a.m. to 12:50 p.m. with Tuesday's times set for 8 to 9:30 a.m. from both the first and 10th tees.
No spectators will be granted entrance to La Quinta Country Club in accordance with current COVID-19 guidelines. Live stats will be available here.
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Golf
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