May 15, 2000
The Tournament: The Cal men's golf team travels to the NCAA West Region Tournament as one of 27 teams playing at the Riverbend Gold Course in Madera, CA May 18-20. The tournament is being hosted by Fresno State.
The Stakes: The top 10 teams out of the 27-team field will advance to the NCAA Finals scheduled May 31-June 3 at the Grand National Golf Course in Opelika, Alabama, hosted by Auburn.
The Field: Cal finds itself in one of the toughest regionals in the NCAA Tournament with a number of the nation's toughest teams. Five of the entrants have been ranked in the national Top 10 for most of the season: Arizona State, Arizona, BYU, UNLV and Fresno State.
Cal Overview: California is one of the hottest teams entering the NCAA Regionals, coming off an impressive team victory in the U. S. Intercollegiate Championships two weeks ago at Stanford. The Bears posted a score of 885, bettering Pepperdine by a single stoke in a xx-team field. That follows an equally impressive third place finish at the Pac-10 Championships in Tempe, AZ in late April. Those two tournaments have been the Bears' best outings all season, with the previous highest team finish being 8th place finish in the Missouri Bluffs Intercollegiate last fall (Oct. 11-12) and an 8th place finish at the John Burns Invite in Hawaii Feb. 23-25. Following its late-season run, Cal is currently ranked No. xx in the MasterCard Collegiate Rankings poll.
Cal Travel Plans: With final examinations just concluded, Cal will leave Tuesday morning from campus and travel to Madera. The Golden Bears will stay at the Ramada Inn ? University in Fresno.
Bears Back in Familiar NCAA Territory: The Cal golf program has established itself as one of the most accomplished in the country over the past several years. This year marks the fourth consecutive season, the Bears have earned a trip to the NCAA Regionals. In fact, three of the past five years, Cal has made it through the regionals into the NCAA Finals. Cal finished 16th last season, and finished 15th in 1998 and 6th in 1995.
Rebuilding Year Turns into Cinderalla Season: Most thought Cal would be in a major rebuilding process during the 2000 season, particularly since two of Cal's top performers have not participated this year. Cal was expected Dan Coyle, an academic All-American, to be the team's top performer. However, an appeal for an extra year of eligbility was turned down by the NCAA meaning his college career is over. Also, Dong Yee was expected to play near the top of the line-up in 2000. However, he has elected to redshirt this year while concentrating on his academics and will return next year.
Cal Line-Up: The Golden Bears will stay with the same line-up it's had over the last few months.
Han Lee, Senior, 71.9 average
Won US Intercollegiate, 3rd at Pac-10s
Robert Hamilton, Senior, 72.9 average
Co-captain, finished 2nd at Pac Coast Inv.
Jesse Ruda, Freshman, 73.7 average
Had a 67 at Pac-10s, 68 at US Intercol.
James Hahn, Freshman
Tied for 17th at Pac-10s at 2-under
Walter Chun, Sophomore, 73.6 average
Posted a 69 to open Pac-10 tourney
Han Lee on Fire: One of the nation's hottest golfers is Cal senior Co-Captain Hon Lee. After posting an opening round 72 at the U.S. Intercollegiate Tournament, he came back with a 68 and a final round 67 to capture the individual crown at 6-under. He was 5-under in three rounds at the Pac-10 Championship, finishing in a tie for 12th. Always one of the top iron players in the game, Lee has developed much more consistency in his driver and that has paid major dividends this spring. His 71.9 average this spring puts him in very elite company in the college game. He earned second team All-Pac-10 honors this season, but that vote was taken before he won the U.S. Intercollegiate Tourney. Other impressive finishes this season came at the Arizona Invitational when he finished in third place with a 3-under scoore and at the John Burns Invitational when he also finished at 3-under to finish in 21st place.
Steve Desimone On His Golf Team: "I'm really proud of this golf team, particularly when you consider how fare we've come. I feel like we're playing our best golf at the right time and that's what you need when you're in a field like this. This is an unbelievable field. Only 10 teams advance so that means so really good golf teams will be left home. If we can play like we have for the last month, we're going to be in the hunt.
"As our guys have gained experience through the season, they've gained confidence. And golf is so much of a head game, that confidence is a major factor. The biggest development is the emergence of Walter Cun at the No. 5 spot. Having a solid performer at that position makes a big difference all through the line-up. The other guys know they can play aggressively, because they can count on Walter making a contribution at No. 5.
Steve Desimone on Similarities to Past Cal Teams: "The way this team has developed reminds me of our other three teams that made it all the way to the NCAA Finals. Those teams got hot at the tail end of the season, just like this group. As a group, our scoring averages hold up well in comparision to any of our NCAA finalist teams.
Steve Desimone on The Riverbend Gold Course and the Tournament: "I believe the scores are going to be real low. The course is generous off the tees and the course is fairly flat. That means a lot of players will have good shots to the greens. Playing on Bermuda instead of Bent grass will also be a factor. With this field, we're going to have to play our best golf if we expect to emerge as one of the 10 finalists."
