University of Oregon
NCAA Championships
No. 1 Ducks Have Work Left in Third Round
06/02/10 | Men's Golf
* Click here to see a photo gallery of NCAA Championships second-round pix.
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – The Honors Course got the best of the top-ranked University of Oregon men's golf contingent during the second round of the 54-hole stroke play segment of the NCAA Championships, leaving the tournament's No. 1 seed with some work to do to finish among the top eight and qualify for match play.
The Ducks shot 6-over 294 on Wednesday, sliding from third to ninth place with a 36-hole total of 2-over 578. Adding to UO's stress level is the fact that they were among the first teams to tee off and complete Round 2 and will be scoreboard watching the rest of the day, hoping not to fall further behind as the second half of the 30-team field takes to the 7,395-yard, par 72 course.
Oregon's top man, Eugene Wong, remains in the individual hunt after an even-par effort that has him at 3-under for the tourney, four strokes behind Augusta State's Henrik Norlander, who was the clubhouse leader among the early groups. The sophomore from North Vancouver, B.C. was in the top 10 after his round despite dropping two strokes on the par 4 18th hole with an uncharacteristic double bogey.
All-Pac-10 golfer Daniel Miernicki struggled mightily and did not factor in the team scoring after carding an 80. UO's best performer over the last month of the regular season stands at 6-over 150.
The Ducks were able to absorb Miernicki's rough day thanks to Andrew Vijarro's 71. UO's high man in Round 1 was the only player on the team in red numbers and improved to 3-over 147 for the championships.
Isaiah Telles shot 75 and ranks second on the squad at 2-over 146, and Jack Dukeminier shot 76 to sit at 6-over 150.
Tee times for the final round of stroke play will be determined once all teams have completed Round 2. An individual champion will be crowned Thursday with the top eight teams following Round 3 advancing to single-elimination match play on Friday.
DAY 2 QUOTES
Oregon
Head Coach Casey Martin
On his team's play:
"The day started great. We got to 9-under and we were in the lead or close to it. Then, we had about an hour stretch of the worse golf of our year. Obviously, that was extenuated by the fact that the golf is really difficult. We had a bunch of double bogeys. It was frustrating as a coach, since I felt helpless, and couldn't do anything about it. True to form, as they have most of the year, they rebounded at the very end and hung in there."
On the new format for the championship:"Yes, without a doubt. This (team's round) would have been big damage to winning a championship on 72-hole stroke play. But to get into the top 8, we got to play great, but it is certainly a very realistic goal."
Oregon Sophomore Eugene Wong
On the course conditions in the second round:
"The greens have definitely sped up a bit since the practice round. I knew that playing in the morning wave they would be nice and fast."
On his round today:
"I had a good round until the oops at 18. I was 2-under until then and finished even par. I played the front nine really well this morning. I putted really well and hit almost every fairway. That helps a lot on this golf course."
Players Mentioned
