Friday, September 9
Eisenhower Blue Course, Colorado Springs, CO
8 a.m.
at
Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational
Baron Szeto led the Cal Poly men's golf team in scoring as a true freshman a year ago, averaging 73.6 strokes over 32 rounds. Eleven of his rounds matched or exceeded par.
Cal Poly Men's Golf Team Opens New Season at Air Force Academy
9/6/2022 12:02:00 PM | Men's Golf
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. -- Armed with seven returning lettermen and four newcomers, the Cal Poly men's golf team opens the fall portion of its 2022-23 season Friday at The Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational hosted by the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo.
Eighteen holes of play are scheduled each day on the Blue Course at the Eisenhower Golf Club. A companion tournament for individuals will be held on the Silver Course, also Friday through Sunday.
It its 53rd season, The Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational was formerly known as the Rocky Mountain Invitational and the Pikes Peak Invitational before the event adopted its present name in 2003, honoring the legendary coach of the Falcon men's golf program for 25 years and is a member of the Air Force Athletics Hall of Fame.
A total of 24 teams will compete for top honors this weekend. Defending team champion UC Davis will not compete in this year's event. The field includes Air Force, Boston College, California Baptist, CSUN, Colorado, Colorado State, Denver, Idaho, Murray State, New Mexico State, Northern Colorado, Northern Iowa, San Jose State, SIU-Edwardsville, South Dakota, Southern Utah, Utah State, Utah Tech, Utah Valley, UTEP, Weber State, Wofford and Wyoming.
The Blue Course, designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr., measures 7,541 yards with a par of 72. It is located 6,788 feet above sea level and is rated as the third-best military golf course in the nation by PGA.com. Course record is 62 by Thomas Hutchison of UC Davis, last year's individual winner.
Topping the list of Cal Poly returnees is Baron Szeto, who averaged 73.6 strokes over 32 rounds as a true freshman a year ago with a team-leading 11 rounds of par or better and three top-20 finishes.
Austin Liu opens his senior season with a 74.45 career scoring average over 77 rounds with five top-20 finishes and 22 rounds of par or better while lefty Joey Zambri enters his third Mustang season with a 75.52 career scoring average over 42 rounds, a pair of top-20 finishes and six rounds of par or better.
Completing Cal Poly's list of returning lettermen are junior Luke Adam and sophomores Drew Kim, Sean Lehman and Parker Mapes.
"A big goal for our program has been to load up the top summer amateur events with Cal Poly team players," said third-year Mustang head coach Phil Rowe. "Progress has been made this summer and our players are looking forward to extending their tournament play into four of the finest collegiate tournaments.
"For our returners, these fall events will be a chance to turn 2022 into a momentous year," Rowe added. "For our new players, it's a lot to be injected into, but they have some solid experience behind them. Two have made the top five lineup already and we look forward to seeing how our new players can elevate the Mustangs' chances of competing among the best in the nation."
The quartet of newcomers features two golfers from across the pond -- graduate student Ben Quick of Beaconsfield, England and freshman Ross Laird of Stenhousemuir, Scotland -- as well as freshman David Llewellyn of Mesquite, Nevada, and sophomore Jackson Parrish, a transfer from Colorado School of Mines whose hometown is Henderson, Nevada.
Quick is a member of the University of Exeter Golf Club, one of the most established and successful university golf programs in the United Kingdom located in Devon in southwest England. Laird has earned four first-place finishes, four seconds and four thirds on the Scottish Juniors Tour since June 2021.
Llewellyn, a graduate of Clovis Online High School, has made most of his mark in golf on the junior tour. He won a Southern Nevada Golf Association Tour event at Aliante in February and was fourth in the SNGA Championship at Palm Valley GC in March. Llewellyn also competed in the 2019 Eddie Hogan Cup, qualified for the 2021 U.S. Junior Amateur in North Carolina and won the Southwest PGA Junior Championship in June 2021
Parrish won three tournaments in the first eight months of 2022 and qualified for the U.S. Open sectionals with a 67. He was the No. 1-ranked Nevadan on the Recruit Look Junior Golf Tour, having won six straight tournaments since early July 2020 on the circuit. Parrish is a transfer from Colorado School of Mines.
Szeto, Zambri, Parrish, Liu and Quick will compete in the team event while Laird, Mapes and Adam are entered in the individual tournament.
The Mustangs will host The Cal Poly Invitational at the Preserve Golf Club in Carmel Valley on Oct. 31 and Nov. 1.
Eighteen holes of play are scheduled each day on the Blue Course at the Eisenhower Golf Club. A companion tournament for individuals will be held on the Silver Course, also Friday through Sunday.
It its 53rd season, The Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational was formerly known as the Rocky Mountain Invitational and the Pikes Peak Invitational before the event adopted its present name in 2003, honoring the legendary coach of the Falcon men's golf program for 25 years and is a member of the Air Force Athletics Hall of Fame.
A total of 24 teams will compete for top honors this weekend. Defending team champion UC Davis will not compete in this year's event. The field includes Air Force, Boston College, California Baptist, CSUN, Colorado, Colorado State, Denver, Idaho, Murray State, New Mexico State, Northern Colorado, Northern Iowa, San Jose State, SIU-Edwardsville, South Dakota, Southern Utah, Utah State, Utah Tech, Utah Valley, UTEP, Weber State, Wofford and Wyoming.
The Blue Course, designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr., measures 7,541 yards with a par of 72. It is located 6,788 feet above sea level and is rated as the third-best military golf course in the nation by PGA.com. Course record is 62 by Thomas Hutchison of UC Davis, last year's individual winner.
Topping the list of Cal Poly returnees is Baron Szeto, who averaged 73.6 strokes over 32 rounds as a true freshman a year ago with a team-leading 11 rounds of par or better and three top-20 finishes.
Austin Liu opens his senior season with a 74.45 career scoring average over 77 rounds with five top-20 finishes and 22 rounds of par or better while lefty Joey Zambri enters his third Mustang season with a 75.52 career scoring average over 42 rounds, a pair of top-20 finishes and six rounds of par or better.
Completing Cal Poly's list of returning lettermen are junior Luke Adam and sophomores Drew Kim, Sean Lehman and Parker Mapes.
"A big goal for our program has been to load up the top summer amateur events with Cal Poly team players," said third-year Mustang head coach Phil Rowe. "Progress has been made this summer and our players are looking forward to extending their tournament play into four of the finest collegiate tournaments.
"For our returners, these fall events will be a chance to turn 2022 into a momentous year," Rowe added. "For our new players, it's a lot to be injected into, but they have some solid experience behind them. Two have made the top five lineup already and we look forward to seeing how our new players can elevate the Mustangs' chances of competing among the best in the nation."
The quartet of newcomers features two golfers from across the pond -- graduate student Ben Quick of Beaconsfield, England and freshman Ross Laird of Stenhousemuir, Scotland -- as well as freshman David Llewellyn of Mesquite, Nevada, and sophomore Jackson Parrish, a transfer from Colorado School of Mines whose hometown is Henderson, Nevada.
Quick is a member of the University of Exeter Golf Club, one of the most established and successful university golf programs in the United Kingdom located in Devon in southwest England. Laird has earned four first-place finishes, four seconds and four thirds on the Scottish Juniors Tour since June 2021.
Llewellyn, a graduate of Clovis Online High School, has made most of his mark in golf on the junior tour. He won a Southern Nevada Golf Association Tour event at Aliante in February and was fourth in the SNGA Championship at Palm Valley GC in March. Llewellyn also competed in the 2019 Eddie Hogan Cup, qualified for the 2021 U.S. Junior Amateur in North Carolina and won the Southwest PGA Junior Championship in June 2021
Parrish won three tournaments in the first eight months of 2022 and qualified for the U.S. Open sectionals with a 67. He was the No. 1-ranked Nevadan on the Recruit Look Junior Golf Tour, having won six straight tournaments since early July 2020 on the circuit. Parrish is a transfer from Colorado School of Mines.
Szeto, Zambri, Parrish, Liu and Quick will compete in the team event while Laird, Mapes and Adam are entered in the individual tournament.
The Mustangs will host The Cal Poly Invitational at the Preserve Golf Club in Carmel Valley on Oct. 31 and Nov. 1.
Players Mentioned
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