Texas Men’s Golf Concludes Season with 13th-Place Showing at NCAA Championship
HUTCHINSON, Kan. -- Despite a pair of eagles on the 52nd hole of the NCAA Championship by senior Toni Hakula and freshman Beau Hossler, coupled with back-to-back birdies on the final two holes by freshman Gavin Hall, the Texas Men's Golf team concluded the 2013-14 season with a 13th-place showing at the national championship Monday afternoon at Prairie Dunes Country Club.
The Longhorns carded a final-round team score of 4-over-par 284 to finish the weather-shortened stroke-play portion of the NCAA Championship at +11 (289-278-284=851). Texas finished six strokes out of a coveted top-eight spot that would have continued its season and put the Longhorns in match play for a third consecutive campaign.
Stanford (281-267-279) led the 30-team field at 13-under 827 and will be joined tomorrow in match play by Alabama (274-278-284=836, -4), LSU (279-278-279=836, -4), Oklahoma State (277-279-284=840, E), Georgia Tech (277-282-282=841, +1), UCLA (279-284-281=844, +4), SMU (275-285-285=845, +5) and Illinois (285-280-280=845, +5).
Hakula completed his four-year career as a Longhorn by tying for ninth place at 3-under 207 (72-68-67) for his best finish in four NCAA Championship appearances. His 67 in the final round was the lowest by any Texas player this week at Prairie Dunes, and he was the only Longhorn with back-to-back 60s on the national stage. Hakula's scorecard contained just one blemish, a bogey on No. 14 - his fifth hole of the day. After the turn, he picked up his seventh overall birdie of the tournament on No. 3, and his eighth came three holes later to dip to -1 through 15. He sank his fifth eagle of the season on the par-5 seventh hole after knocking in a 35 footer mere minutes after Hossler drained a 30-footer from the same area of the green in the group ahead for his eagle.
Hossler (73-68-70-211) and Hall (73-71-72=216) finished tied for 35th and 76th places, respectively, in their NCAA Championship debuts. Juniors Kramer Hickok (71-71-76=218) and Brax McCarthy (77-75-75=227) rounded out the Texas squad in ties for 89th and 136th.
Stanford's Cameron Wilson (71-63-70=204, -6) captured the individual medalist title. Wilson made a birdie on the third playoff hole (No. 17) to defeat Georgia Tech's Ollie Schniederjans.
NCAA Championship
Prairie Dunes Country Club (par 70 – 6,941 yards)
Final Team Standings (54-hole stroke play portion)
1. Stanford – 281-267-279=827 (-13)
T2. Alabama – 274-278-284=836 (-4)
T2. LSU – 279-278-279=836 (-4)
4. Oklahoma State – 277-279-284=840 (E)
5. Georgia Tech – 277-282-282=841 (+1)
6. UCLA – 279-284-281=844 (+4)
T7. SMU – 275-285-285=845 (+5)
T7. Illinois – 285-280-280=845 (+5)
---top-eight teams advance to stroke-play beginning Tuesday, May 27---
9. South Carolina – 272-292-282=846 (+6)
10. Houston – 284-285-279=848 (+8)
T11. California – 279-289-282=850 (+10)
T11. Georgia – 286-287-277=850 (+10)
13. TEXAS – 289-278-284=851 (+11)
14. Oregon – 284-297-271=852 (+12)
15. Washington – 279-287-287=853 (+13)
T16. Vanderbilt – 281-285-288=854 (+14)
T16. Oklahoma – 273-287-294=854 (+14)
T18. Kentucky – 288-286-283=857 (+17)
T18. Arkansas – 292-286-279=857 (+17)
20. Missouri – 283-289-287=859 (+19)
21. UAB – 282-285-295=862 (+22)
22. Georgia State – 285-290-288=863 (+23)
23. Auburn – 274-292-300=866 (+26)
24. Florida State – 286-301-283=870 (+30)
25. Iowa State – 278-299-294=871 (+31)
26. Kennesaw State – 294-294-284=872 (+32)
27. Purdue – 286-289-298=873 (+33)
28. Virginia Tech – 294-301-281=876 (+36)
29. Texas A&M – 296-288-297=881 (+41)
30. Southern California – 296-298-295=889 (+49)
Final Player Leaderboard
Cameron Wilson beat Ollie Schniederjans on the third playoff hole.
1. Ollie Schniederjans, Georgia Tech – 71-65-68=204 (-6)
2. Cameron Wilson, Stanford – 71-63-68=204 (-6)
T3. David Boote, Stanford – 73-67-65=205 (-5)
T3. James Ross, Houston – 70-69-66=205 (-5)
T3. Robby Shelton, Alabama – 72-65-68=205 (-5)
T6. Denny McCarthy, Virginia* – 65-71-70=206 (-4)
T6. Seth Reeves, Georgia Tech – 66-72-68=206 (-4)
T6. Benjamin Taylor, LSU – 71-67-68=206 (-4)
T9. Toni Hakula, TEXAS – 72-68-67=207 (-3)
T9. Five additional players at 3-under 207
* - denotes competing as an individual
Additional Texas Players
T35. Beau Hossler – 73-68-70=211 (+1)
T76. Gavin Hall – 73-71-72=216 (+6)
T89. Kramer Hickok – 71-71-76=218 (+8)
T136. Brax McCarthy – 77-75-75=227 (+17)
Post-tournament Quotes
Texas Head Coach John Fields
On his emotions following 54 holes at the NCAA Championship: "We had a small window at the end to maybe get it done, but we would've needed some help from other teams, too. The guys, their heart and souls are wrapped up in this. I'm stinging for them, I hurt for them just like any parent would right now."
