BYU hosts PING Cougar Classic

PROVO -- The 13th-ranked BYU men's golf team looks to improve on an already stellar season as they play host at the 43rd-annual PING Cougar Classic at the Riverside Country Club April 22-23.

The Cougars will host a field of 19 teams, including every Division I golf program in the state of Utah and two-time defending Cougar Classic champion No. 64 Colorado State.

Despite finishing in second in 2003 and fifth in 2004, the Cougars have had tremendous success at the Classic, earning 31 tournament championships in the last 43 years. Their last tournament championship came in 2002 when they shared the title with Colorado State and Nevada. Former BYU All-American Andy Miller was the last Cougar to win the individual crown at the Classic, shooting a record 54-hole low 201 and tying the record for the lowest round (63).

"We're gearing up for a strong performance this weekend," said BYU head coach Bruce Brockbank. "We would really like to win our home tournament. It's been a while since we've done well at the Classic and it would be nice to win this tournament again."

In last year's tournament, BYU recorded a disappointing fifth-place finish (861). Senior Ron Harvey, Jr. narrowly missed an individual title in a three-person playoff, finishing in a tie for second place with a career-best 10-under-par 206. Senior Greg Machtaler and junior Oscar Alvarez tied for eighth place with a 4-under-par 212.

The 19-team field includes: BYU (13), UC Davis (49), San Diego State (58), Colorado State (64), Denver (71), Fresno State (75), Nevada (88), Northern Colorado (89), Hawaii (104), Utah (117), Southern Utah (118), UTEP (120), Weber State (141), Boise State (156), Wyoming (166), Air Force (171), Ferris State, Utah State (186) and Utah Valley State College.

2005 PING Cougar Classic QUICK FACTS

Date: April 22-23 (Friday & Saturday)

Rounds: Three-rounds (54 holes); 36 holes on Friday (Shotgun beginning at 9 a.m.), 18 holes on Saturday with tee times on the 1st and 10th tees.

Friday Tee Times: First round will be a shotgun start begining arond 9:00 a.m (weather permitting).

Saturday Tee Times: Third round starts at 8:30-10:18 a.m. on 1st and 10th tees. In case of bad weather, the tournament will change to a shotgun start at approximately 8 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. (weather permitting)

Course: Riverside Country Club

Par: 72

Yardage: 6,950

2005 TEAM Champion:

Colorado State 286-287-272--845 (-19)

2005 Individual Champion:

Matthew Kodama, 70-67-69--206 (-10)

TOURNAMENT Field (19 Teams): BYU, Air Force, Boise State, Colorado State, Ferris State, Fresno State, Northern Colorado, San Diego State, Southern Utah, Utah State, UC Davis, Denver, Hawaii, Nevada, UTEP, Utah, Utah Valley State College, Wyoming, Weber State

TOURNAMENT FORMAT: Best four of five scores counted on a daily basis. In case of a first-place tie, the three round total of the fifth score will be used to break the tie. A tie for the individual championship will be broken by a sudden death playoff beginning on hole no. 1.

Updates: Visit www.byucougars.com for results