Collin Morikawa Wins Pac-12 Title
Collin Morikawa became the fourth Cal player to win the Pac-12 Championships on Wednesday.

Collin Morikawa Wins Pac-12 Title

Golden Bears Finish Third

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EUGENE, Ore. – Cal's National Player of the Year candidate Collin Morikawa (68-70-64-70 – 272, -12) became the fourth Golden Bear to win Pac-12 individual medalist honors Wednesday at the par-71, 7044-yard Eugene Country Club. The senior joined Cal's previous conference winners Charlie Wi (1995), current assistant coach Eric Mina (2010) and Max Homa (2013).

"This is definitely one of the most special wins so far," Morikawa said. "To have the Pac-12's back at Eugene Country Club where the NCAA's were held my freshman year and to come back three years later and win is very memorable. I knew I was playing well this week and just wanted to put everything out there."

"I've been so close this year and really throughout all of college," Morikawa added. "I've learned so much being with the team and it's refreshing to see it all come together."

Morikawa finished with a flourish of three consecutive birdies and had four over his final eight holes to come in four shots better than second-place Kyler Dunkle of Utah (70-64-69-73 – 276, -8). Morikawa started Wednesday's fourth and final round of the 72-hole event co-hosted by Oregon and the Pac-12 with a one-stroke lead over Dunkle but quickly found himself three shots behind Dunkle after making bogeys on each of his first three holes, while Dunkle birdied two of his first four holes starting on the back nine.

But Morikawa didn't have another bogey the rest of the way, making seven consecutive pars before his four-under par play over the final eight holes while Dunkle played his final 14 holes in four-over par.

"Today started out a little rough with the three bogeys, but I knew I had a lot of holes left and many good shots ahead of me," Morikawa said. "I just took it one shot at a time and made my way through the round. I knew where I stood with a few holes left and I had a great up-and-down on 15 to put myself in position to close it out the final three holes."

"Collin has come close to winning so many times in his college career," Alex and Marie Shipman Director of Men's Golfer Walter Chun said about the five-time winner who has also been in a pair of playoffs and finished in the top five in 22 of 46 career events. "Winning today is a real testament to his character for staying patient and persevering. It's a tremendous accomplishment to be the Pac-12 champion and he will have that with him forever."

"It was special watching Collin finish off the tournament with a win," Mina said. "He's been in this position a lot over the spring and to come through with a victory was awesome. These are memories he'll remember for the rest of his life."

Cal (357-350-343-371 – 1421, +1) started Wednesday's fourth and final round with a three-stroke advantage over UCLA (353-352-348-367 – 1420, E) and was four shots ahead of eventual team champion Stanford (359-346-349-359 – 1413, -7) but finished in third place behind the Cardinal and second-place Bruins.

One day after all six players shot under par Morikawa would be the only the golfer in the Cal lineup to accomplish the feat again Wednesday.

Sebastian Crampton (73-69-70-75 – 287, +3) was the second Cal player on the final individual leaderboard in a tie for 14th and was followed by KK Limbhasut (77-68-70-73 – 288, +4) in a tie for 16th, Kaiwen Liu (69-73-69-79 – 290, +6) and Jamie Cheatham (73-71-70-76 – 290, +6) in a tie for 23rd, and James Song (74-72-70-77 – 293, +9) in a tie for 33rd.

Cal and Morikawa will learn where they will play next in NCAA Regionals action during a live announcement made on Golf Channel's Golf Central on Wednesday, May 1 (6 pm PT). The NCAA Regionals will be played May 12-15.
 
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  • Morikawa has finished in the top seven of all 10 of his events this season, while his streaks of consecutive top-10 and top-20 showings have reached 16 and 23 dating back to the last two campaigns, respectively
  • Crampton had Cal's lone eagle of the day on the par-five 13th but also six bogeys (1, 7, 9, 10, 15, 18)
  • Limbhasut had two birdies (3, 13) and four bogeys (1, 7, 8, 12)
  • Liu also managed a couple of birdies (7, 17) but also had five bogeys (5, 9, 10, 15, 18) as well as a double bogey on the third and triple bogey on the 11th, both par-fours
  • Cheatham rebounded with a three-under par 34 on the back nine that included three birdies (10, 16, 17) and no bogeys after an eight-over par 42 on the front that had back-to-back double bogeys (2, 3) followed by four more bogeys (4, 6, 7, 9)
  • Song had another up-and-down round that included birdies on each of the course's three par-fives (6, 13, 16), but also three bogeys (5, 7, 9) and three double bogeys (8, 15, 18)
  • The 81-team field for the NCAA Championships will be announced May 1 live on GOLF Channel and begin May 12-15 with six NCAA Regionals. The possible sites are Simpsonville, Ky. (University of Louisville Golf Club; Host – Louisville); Stanford, Calif. (Stanford Golf Course; Host – Stanford); Athens, Ga. (University of Georgia Golf Course; Host – Georgia); Pullman, Wash. (Palouse Ridge Golf Club; Host – Washington State); Murrells Inlet, S.C. (TPC Myrtle Beach; Host – Coastal Carolina and Myrtle Beach Regional Sports Alliance); and Austin, Tex. (University of Texas Golf Club; Host – Texas).
FINAL PAC-12 CHAMPIONSHIPS LEADERBOARDS
(After 3 Of 3 Days, 4 Of 4 Rounds, 72 Of 72 Holes)
Eugene Country Club (Par 71, 7044 Yards)
 
TEAM
1. Stanford (359-346-349-359 – 1413, -7); 2. UCLA (353-352-348-367 – 1420, E); 3. California (357-350-343-371 – 1421, +1); 4. Arizona State (369-354-356-364 – 1443, +23); 5. Oregon (364-353-357-377 – 1451, +31); T5. Utah (365-351-363-372 – 1451, +31); 7. USC (359-354-360-379 – 1452, +32); 8. Washington (362-364-363-375 – 1464, +44); 9. Arizona (367-364-356-383 – 1470, +50); 10. Colorado (358-359-377-386 – 1480, +60); 11. Oregon State (381-355-377-380 – 1493, +73); 12. Washington State (382-375-383-400 – 1541, +121)
 
PLAYER – INDIVIDUAL MEDALIST
1. Collin Morikawa – California (68-70-64-70 – 272, -12)
 
PLAYER – CALIFORNIA INDIVIDUALS
1. Collin Morikawa (68-70-64-70 – 272, -12); T14. Sebastian Crampton (73-69-70-75 – 287, +3); T16. KK Limbhasut (77-68-70-73 – 288, +4); T23. Jamie Cheatham (73-71-70-76 – 290, +6); T23. Kaiwen Liu (69-73-69-79 – 290, +6); T33. James Song (74-72-70-77 – 293, +9)

 
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