Record-Tying Debut By Menke Highlights Opening Tournament For Huskies
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Fifth-year senior transfer RJ Manke tied several UW records, including lowest three-round total, and finished tied for third in his Husky debut at the Maui Jim Intercollegiate to help propel Washington to a sixth-place team finish at Mirabel Country Club on Sunday.
Manke, originally from University Place, Wash., shot a final-round 63 (-7) to tally a 15-under 195 in his first tournament since transferring from Pepperdine. A day after flirting with the Husky record for lowest score in any round with a second-round 62, Menke equaled the UW record for best third-round score, shooting the fifth final round 63 in school history.
Manke opened the front with a 5-under 30, which was jump-started by an eagle on the par-five second hole. He birdied No. 10 to get to minus-6 for his round, before his lone bogey on the 217-yard par-3 14th hole brought him back to five-under. Back-to-back birdies on No. 16 and 17 got Manke to -7 for the day where he would ultimately finish.
The 63 helped him equal teammate Noah Woolsey for lowest three-round total in UW history. Woolsey shot a 15-under 195 at the Old Town Club Collegiate in September of 2019.
"What a great performance from RJ in his first tournament as a Husky," said UW coach Alan Murray. "He played especially stellar during the weekend."
Manke shot even par 70 in Friday's first round and did not record his first birdie until the 18th hole. He ended up tallying 17 birdies over his final 36 holes.
Manke tied for third with ASU's David Puig. Auburn's J.M. Butler won with a three-day total of 17-under 193. Christo Lamprecht from Georgia Tech shot 16-under 194.
The Huskies had their best round of the weekend with a 10-under 270 to finish -25 overall. Despite shooting their best round, they fell three spots in the standings to sixth. Georgia Tech held off a late charge from Clemson for a one-shot team victory at -44.
"I was slightly disappointed to finish sixth, but overall it was a really positive week for the team and I saw lots of really good signs," Murray said.
"Taehoon played excellent as an individual this week and registered his best collegiate finish. Petr played really solid. Teddy was solid and same with Noah. It was a good experience for Aidan to play his first event as a freshman and he showed that he can be a big player for us moving forward."
Sophomore Taehoon Song finished with a three-round total of 199 (-11) and notched his first top-10 finish at ninth overall. He shot a 2-under 68 on Sunday and left Scottsdale with just two bogeys in 54 holes of action.
Teddy Lin tied for 31st with a three-round total of 4-under 206. He shot an even-par 70 in the final round.
Woolsey and Petr Hruby both tied for 37th at 3-under 207. Woolsey tied for second amongst all competitors with 19 birdies but several double bogeys painted his scorecard blue and brought his total back to the field. He shot 1-under 69 on Sunday.
Hruby was 2-under 68 on Sunday, his best round of the weekend.
Freshman Aidan O'Hagan shot a 73 on Sunday and finished especially strong with birdies on each of his final three holes.
"We will get back to Seattle, regroup and prepare for the Husky invitational over the course of the next week," Murray said, referring to the Huskies lone home tournament of the fall, Sept. 20-21 at Gold Mountain Golf Club in Bremerton.
"I am encouraged and excited by this group."