SDSU MEN'S GOLF SLIPS INTO SEVENTH AT ST. MARY'S INVITE

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Aztecs’ Samiere, Sugimoto among the top 15 individually

Source:  goaztecs.com

Photo:  P.J. Samiere is tied for 10th after the second round of the Saint Mary's Invitational.  Courtesy goaztecs.com

November 7, 2017 (Pebble Beach) - The San Diego State men’s golf team dropped into seventh place at the Saint Mary’s Invitational after posting a collective 2-under-par 282 on Monday during the second round at the famed Poppy Hills Golf Course.

Despite shaving seven strokes of their score from the previous day, the Aztecs slipped one notch in the standings with a 36-hole total of 3-over 571. Consequently, SDSU remains one shot behind sixth place Brigham Young and two strokes in back of fifth-place Colorado State (+1) heading into Wednesday’s final round on the par-71, 7,002-yard track.

USC (-13) fired a blistering 16-under 268 on Tuesday to take over the top spot, while Stanford (-12) climbed into second on the strength of an 11-under 273, followed by Saint Mary’s (-3) and San Francisco (E).

Individually, PJ Samiere (Kailua, Hawaii) finds himself in a tie for 10th at 3-under 139 after shooting a 69 over the second 18 holes. The SDSU senior led the squad with six birdies, including an impressive conversion on the par-4, 421-yard No. 3, which ranks as the fourth-toughest hole of the tournament thus far. However, the reigning California State Amateur champion was unable to overcome a rash of four bogeys, including three on the back nine.

As a result, Samiere stumbled two places down on the leaderboard, remaining six shots behind front-runner Justin Suh of USC (-9), while Trojan teammate Kaito Onishi (-6) vaulted 30 spots into second thanks to a second-round 63, while Stanford’s Brandon Wu and Arizona’s Brad Reeves are tied for third a 5-under 137.

Despite logging his second straight 70, Steve Sugimoto (San Diego, Calif.) also lost ground on Tuesday, dropping six spots into a tie for 14th at 2-under 140. The Aztec freshman sank four birdies to go with an eagle on the par-4, 385-yard No. 5, which ranked as the fifth-most difficult hole of the second round. However, three bogeys and a double on the par-4 fourth hastened his fall out of the top 10.

Conversely, Blake Abercrombie (Rocklin, Calif.) managed to climb six places into a tie for 26th at 1-over 143 after matching Sugimoto with a 70. The SDSU senior also drained four birdies on the day to go with a team-best 12 pars. Nevertheless, a bogey and a double at the par-5 fifth prevented a steeper ascent.

Elsewhere, Zihao Jin (Beijing, China) trimmed four shots off his first-round total, carding a 73 to finish the day in a tie for 69th at 8-over 150. The Aztec freshman sank four birdies of his own, including a successful make on the aforementioned No. 4, along with a drain on his finishing hole the par-5 ninth. However, Jin’s progress was stymied by a plague of four bogeys and a double on the par-4 No. 7.

Sophomore Trevor Norby (Carlsbad, Calif.) suffered SDSU’s biggest drop on Tuesday, tumbling 41 places into a tie for 96th at 16-over 158 after posting an uncharacteristic 82. The San Marcos High product got off to an ominous start with a bogey on the par-4 10th before tallying eight additional blemishes on his scorecard, including a triple on the par-5 18th prior to the turn.

The Aztec contingent also featured Puwit Anupansuebsai (Nakhom Phanom, Thailand), an individual competitor who climbed 24 spots into a tie for 62nd at 7-over 149 after matching his season-best on Tuesday with a 70. Starting on the 10th tee, the SDSU freshman was 3-over for the day after logging his third bogey at No. 15. However, Anupansebsai played spot-free golf the rest of the way, sinking four birdies, including back-to-back conversions on the second and third greens.

The Saint Mary’s Invitational concludes on Wednesday when San Diego State tees off alongside Nevada and Brigham Young for the final round, beginning on the 10th hole at 8:04 a.m. PT.

Saint Mary’s Invitational

Round Two Results

Poppy Hills G.C.

Pebble Beach, Calif.

Par 71, 7,002 yards

Team Standings (Top 5 of 18 teams + SDSU)

1. USC                                                                               287-268—555 (-13)

2. Stanford                                                                       283-273—556 (-12)

3. Saint Mary’s                                                                 285-280—565 (-3)

4. San Francisco                                                               281-287—568 (E)

5. Colorado State                                                             283-286—569 (+1)

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7. San Diego State                                                           289-282—571 (+3)

Individual Leaders (Top 9 of 100 players + SDSU)      

1. Justin Suh, USC                                                            67-66—133 (-9)

2. Kaito Onishi, USC                                                         73-63—136 (-6)

T3. Brandon Wu, Stanford                                              70-67—137 (-5)

T3. Brad Reeves, Arizona                                                67-70—137 (-5)

T5. Hayden Shieh, Santa Clara                                       70-68—138 (-4)

T5. Ash Hakim, Saint Mary’s                                          70-68—138 (-4)

T5. Thomas Thurloway, Toledo                                      73-65—138 (-4)

T5. Connor Blick, Saint Mary’s                                       68-70—138 (-4)

T5. Patrick Fishburn, Brigham Young                            67-71—138 (-4)                                

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T10. PJ Samiere, SDSU                                                   70-69—139 (-3)

T14. Steve Sugimoto, SDSU                                           70-70—140 (-2)

T26. Blake Abercrombie, SDSU                                     73-70—143 (+1)

T62. Puwit Anupansuebsai, SDSU^                              79-70—149 (+7)

T69. Zihao Jin, SDSU                                                       77-73—150 (+8)

T96. Trevor Norby, SDSU                                               76-82—158 (+16)

Day two results


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