Huskies Rally On Back Nine At Southwestern Invitational

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif. – The Washington men's golf team shaved nine strokes off of its day-one total, shooting an eight-under 280 in the second round Tuesday at the Southwestern Invitational. The 21st-ranked Huskies enter Wednesday's final round in fourth place at seven-under for the tournament, one of only four teams under par after two days.
 
The Huskies made up a lot of ground on the back nine, as the five UW golfers combined for 12 birdies and an eagle, along with just four bogies after the turn. No. 3 Arizona State sits atop the team leaderboard, at 18-under, while No. 7 Pepperdine is 12-under and No. 13 Georgia has two shots on the UW, at 9-under.
 
"The boys played very well today," said UW assistant coach Thomas Sutton. "The course was playing tough and they were able to overcome a slow start with a strong back nine. I'm really proud of how they are competing; it's fun to watch."
 
Sophomore Teddy Lin shot a 3-under 69 to improve to 5-under for the tournament, good for sole possession of fifth place. He's just two shots back of the leaders. Tuesday, Lin made six birdies, including three on the final seven holes.
 
Noah Woolsey began his day by making par on his first 13 holes before back-to-back birdies on No. 14 and No. 15. He finished his round 2-under for the day, and 2-under for the tournament after making par on Monday. He sits tied for 12th on the leaderboard.
 
UW senior RJ Manke, who shot a 3-over 75 in the opening round, bounced back with a 3-under 69 on Tuesday. After one birdie and one bogey on the front nine, he finished with three birdies on the back nine to finish the day even for the tournament, good for a tie for 22nd place.
 
After a bogey and two doubles on the front nine, Petr Hruby made up some ground with birdies on No. 12 and 13, finishing his round with a 3-over 75. He's in 34th place at 3-over for the tournament.
 
After a 79 in the opening round, Taehoon Song used an eagle and five birdies to finish with an even-par 72 on Tuesday.
 
"I'm really proud of how Taehoon responded after yesterday's struggle," Sutton said. "His even-par round today was huge for us and kept us in the tournament."
 
The third and final round of the Southwestern Invitational begins Wednesday morning. The Huskies' tee times begin at 10:06 a.m. Golf Channel coverage begins at 1:30 p.m. PT.
 
"Four of our five scored better today than yesterday," said Sutton. "If we can do that again tomorrow, I like our chances."