Feb. 1, 2010

Team 

Player  

TUCSON, Ariz. - Fourteen teams teed off in the Arizona Intercollegiate this morning, and with 36 holes complete, California holds a seven stroke lead. The Golden Bears set the blistering pace in the first round, jumping out to a ten stroke lead with their 269 (-15) first, and never relinquished that lead. Arizona however has positioned itself in striking distance with a late push and sits seven strokes off the lead. California carded a 543 (-25) on day one while Arizona shot a 550 (-18).

John Catlin of New Mexico and Michael Weaver of California are tied for first. Weaver recorded a 64 (-7) in the first round, the best score of the day, while Caitlin shot back-to-back rounds of 66 (-5). The two sit at ten under. Fresno State's Bhavik Patel and Arizona's Rich Saferian are tied for first at 134 (-8). At six under par, Eric Mina of California and Jordan Russell of Texas A&M are tied for fifth.

To put California's day into perspective, a year ago, on the same course, the Arizona Intercollegiate was won by Pepperdine, which carded an 855 (+3). The defending champion Waves currently sit in fourth place, two strokes behind Fresno State's 557 (-11). Texas A&M, New Mexico and Florida are all eight under and tied for fifth.

Four Arizona golfers finished day one in the top 20. Saferian shot a 134 (-8) and is tied for third place. The senior's best finish in his Wildcat career was a tie for third in the 2009 ASU Thunderbird Invitational; Saferian will try to better that tomorrow. Likewise, Tom Conran, competing for Arizona's "B" squad, has a chance to break his career best. The junior finished fifth in a JV event last year, and currently sits in a tie for seventh. Also in the top ten was Tarquin MacManus. MacManus shot a first round 66 (-5) that put him in a tie for second place, but struggled to a second round 73 (+1) that dropped him into a tie for tenth. The junior is three under for the tournament. Rounding out the top twenty for the Cats is Philip Bagdade. After finishing five tournaments in the top twenty a season ago, Bagdade is looking for his first this year.

The third round will begin tomorrow morning, with a shotgun start scheduled for 8:00 a.m. MST. The Arizona Intercollegiate is competed at Arizona National, a par 71, 6,793-yard layout. Live stats of the final round will be available at www.golfstat.com

Top Five Teams

1. California                                          269-274=543 (-25)

2. Arizona                                            279-271=550 (-18)

3. Fresno State                                     284-273=557 (-11)

4. Pepperdine                                       284-275=559 (-9)

5. Three tied at                                                     560 (-8)

Top Five Individuals

T1. John Catlin, New Mexico               66-66=132 (-10)

T1. Michael Weaver, California            64-68=132 (-10)

T3. Bhavik Patel, Fresno State             69-65=134 (-8)

T3. Rich Saferian, Arizona                    68-66=134 (-8)

5. Two tied at                                                   136 (-6)

Arizona Finishers

T3. Rich Saferian                                  68-66=134 (-8)

T7. Tom Conran (B)                             68-69=137 (-5)

T10. Tarquin MacManus                      66-73=139 (-3)

T18. Philip Bagdade                             72-68=140 (-2)

T26. Jonathan Khan                             73-68=141 (-1)

T36. Peter Ireland*                              70-73=143 (+1)

T42. Brad Nicholson                            75-69=144 (+2)

T47. Stefan Cox (B)                             71-74=145 (+3)

T50. Kenji Hernandez (B)                    73-73=146 (+4)

T52. Juan Pablo Hernandez (B)            76-71=147 (+5)

T55. Trent Redfern (B)                         76-72=148 (+6)

T73. Alvin Cheung*                              83-76=159 (+17)

77. Miles Thorson*                              85-82=167 (+25)

79. Brian Walker                                  86-90=176 (+34)

(B) Competed as a member of Arizona's "B" team

* Competed as an individual