Beavers In Fifth Place Through 36 Holes In Best Field Of Season
PHOENIX, Ariz. – Playing in the most competitive tournament of its 2021 season, the Thunderbird Collegiate, the Oregon State men's golf team proved they are among the best teams in the country.
The Beavers shot a 20-under 271-277--548 at the par-71, 7,319-yard Papago Golf Club on Friday to put them in fifth place in a 17-team field that includes eight teams in the top 32 in the latest Golfstat.com rankings.
Only two of the eight ranked teams are ahead of Oregon State -- No. 3 Oklahoma State (26-under 542) and No. 26 Texas Tech (23-under 545).
No. 31 New Mexico, Long Beach State and Colorado State didn't finish the opening day due to darkness, but none of those three teams were within 13 strokes of the Beavers.
The final round of the two-day, 54-hole tournament begins at 6:54 a.m. on Saturday and live scoring is available at Golfstat.com.
"Success in sports when you reach a certain level becomes just as much about belief in yourself as it does skill," Oregon State head coach Jon Reehoorn said. "It was awesome to watch our guys carry themselves in a manner that they believed they belonged from the first tee.
"We are in a great spot heading into tomorrow as we still need to do some chasing," Reehoorn added. "We need to just keep doing what we've been doing. Keep the pedal down and see where we can go."
Senior Shawn Lu had an eagle, 11 birdies and nothing worse than a bogey on the day to fire a 9-under 65-68--133. He's in a tie for third place and only two strokes out of the lead heading into the final round.
Blake Tomlinson of Utah finished the 36-hole day with an 11-under 65-66--131 and Jacob Skov Olesen of TCU is second with a 10-under 67-65--132. Garrett Martin of Texas Tech is tied with Lu with a 9-under 133.
"Shawn Lu putted the lights out today," Reehoorn said. "He had one of the most impressive putting displays I've seen in college golf. After he made a birdie putt on 15 from about 20 feet this afternoon he told me this is as close as he will come to feeling like Steph Curry."
Carson Barry carded two rounds in red figures, giving him four in his last six, and is tied for 18th place with a 5-under 69-68--137.
Jackson Lake had seven birdies and only two bogeys to put him in a tie for 25th place with a 4-under 67-71--138.
Spencer Tibbits is tied for 49th place with an even-par 72-70--142 and Nolan Thoroughgood is tied for 90th with a 6-over 70-78--148.
OUR MISSION
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