University of Oregon
UNM Championship Course
Omlid Wins McGuire Title; Leads UO to Team Win & Record Score
09/18/10 | Women's Golf
* Final results are available in the LINKS box to the right.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Senior Erica Omlid paved the way for a record-breaking day and team victory for the University of Oregon women's golf team Saturday, thanks to her first career individual win in the third and final round of the Dick McGuire / Branch Law Firm Invitational held on the par-73 UNM Championship Course.
The Springfield, Ore., native helped UO improve a position Saturday en route to its second team victory under second-year head coach Ria (Quiazon) Scott. The Ducks combined on a tourney-low, two-under final round of 292, en route to a two-stroke win (295-296-290-881) – its 22nd in program history.
Oregon's five-over tourney score also tied a school record from the 2008 UNLV Spring Rebel Invitational when UO shot a five-over 869 (292-291-286) at the par-72 Boulder Creek Golf Club.
First-day leader and No. 21 Ohio State followed two strokes back in second place (292-295-296-883), ahead of Colorado (third, 302-294-288-884), No. 29 Denver (fourth-tie, 303-291-298-892) and UC Davis (fourth-tie, 298-297-297-892).
“I'm happy that our team pulled through,” Omlid said, “because it shows our fight. I hit the ball, putted solidly, gave myself lots of opportunities, then took advantage of them. I haven't won a tourney since my senior year in high school, so it feels good to reap some rewards for all the work I've put it in since.”
Other results from the 17-team field included TCU (sixth, 301-309-287-897), No. 28 San Diego State (seventh, 294-297-309-900), UNLV (eighth, 307-299-302-908), BYU (ninth, 307-307-298-912), New Mexico (10th, 314-299-300-913), Northwestern (11th, 302-307-305-914), Colorado State (12th, 307-311-299-917), Georgia State (13th, 315-306-297-918), UC Irvine (14th, 315-314-305-934), Indiana (15th-t, 323-308-311-942), Wyoming (15th-t, 315-319-308-942) and Hawai'i (17th, 328-318-319-965).
On the individual front, Omlid's two birdies the last two holes made up a one-stroke deficit to Ohio State's Rachel Rohanna who played in the same foursome as Omlid Saturday. The Buckeye sophomore placed second (69-73-70-212) after she shot par scores the last five holes after staking five birdies, two bogeys and six pars the first 13 holes of the round.
First-day leader Therese Koelbaek of UNLV (70-70-75) followed in a tie for third place at 215 with San Diego State's Malin Enarsson (71-71-73). Enarsson had two birdies, 14 pars and two bogeys Saturday, while Koelbak balanced three birdies with three bogeys and a double bogey on the opening 13 holes, then shot par scores the final five holes.
“I had five shots within six feet of the hole today,” Omlid said, “and overall my shots ended up where I wanted them. On the first hole, I managed to 3-putt from 15 feet out, so that woke me up and calmed my nerves, and I said so let's roll, and soon got into a rhythm. On the 18th I knew was close (to the win), but thought Therese was still in the lead, so I was just trying to birdie. When I made the five-footer I walked off, and Coach Gray said, 'Great job, I think you just won,' and that was the first time I knew.”
Entering the tourney with a previous round best of a one-under 71 from last year's Pac-10 Championships in Eugene, Omlid (70-72-69-211) recorded a career low round for the second straight day with her four-under 69, and also tied the sixth-best round in school history.
Not surprisingly, her eight-under tourney score (211) also stood as the third-best in school history behind Kendra Little's winning, 12-under 207 score on the same course last fall and Cathryn Bristow's eight-under 208 at the UNLV Spring Rebel Invitational in 2008.
The Springfield, Ore., native Omlid entered the tourney with a previous tourney best placing and three-round score of 14th and nine-over 225, respectively, from last season's Giustina Memorial Classic and Pac-10 Championships.
Glancing at Omlid's final round scorecard, she recovered from a bogey on the par-5 first hole, to stake birdies on the par-3 second, par-4 fourth and par-5 fifth along with a par on the par-4 third hole. After a string of eight straight pars on holes 6-13, she added three more birdies on the par-4 14th, par-3 17th and par-5 18th; a 10th par score on the par-4 16th, and a second bogey on the par-4 15th.
“The course had an extra par 5 compared to other courses,” Omlid said, “but all of the holes were under 500 yards, so after playing the Women's Am, the distance still felt comfortable. I felt I played the course smarter (than last year), and just took it one shot at a time and didn't get ahead of myself.”
Saturday was the eighth time that she's paced UO in her 78 career rounds (seven of which have come in her last 16 rounds as a senior and junior), and first time that the 2010 U.S. Women's Amateur qualifier has led UO in a tourney's final standings.
Among other Duck results, junior Ashley Edwards followed in a tie for 15th place (72-74-76-222) for her fifth, career top-15 finish; two other Ducks finished top 30 overall – sophomore Cheyenne Hickle (23rd-tie, 76-73-75-224) and senior Kendra Little (26th-tie, 77-77-71-225); and freshman Raphaela Dyer wrapped up her second collegiate tourney tied for 53rd place (78-81-75-234).
Oregon's other birdie counts for the day follow: Little (6 – holes #1, 5, 8-10, 18), Dyer (4 - #8-9, 15, 18), Edwards (2 - #2, 16), Hickle (1 - #6),
Hole-by-hole results from each round are available at the www.GolfStat.com website at the
http://www.golfstatresults.com//public/leaderboards/team/static/team_players_2321.html
URL address.
Going back in the Duck history books, Omlid's win was the 25th all-time for the program individually and ninth the last five seasons.
Senior teammate Kendra Little claimed three of those wins in the same event in 2009 (71-68-68-207 (-12, par 73)) by one stroke en route to a two-stroke tournament record and four-stroke UO tourney record, the 2008 Giustina Memorial Classic (69-73-73-215) and the 2008 Duck Invitational by a similar four-stroke margin (70-73-71-214).
Recent Duck Cathryn Bristow also captured three career titles in the 2005 Giustina event (70-74-73-217), 2006 Illini Spring Classic (74-72-146) and 2008 UNLV Spring Rebel Invitational (69-69-70-208) - UO's first-ever tourney with all-under par scores on the par-72 course.
Other recent victors in that span included - Felicia Eastick in the 2007 Giustina event (74-69-74-217) and Kim McCready in the 2007 Baja Classic (70-75-145).
Looking ahead, UO has four almost three weeks until its next competition, the Edean Ihlanfeldt Invitational, Monday-Wednesday, October 4-6, at the Tacoma Country Club in Tacoma, Wash.
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Players Mentioned
