Cougars Leave Arizona in 14th Place

TEMPE -- A big effort by the BYU men’s golf team yielded a 14th-place conclusion to the Arizona State Thunderbird Invitational at the par-71 Karsten Golf Course.

The Cougars ended the tournament at 21-over-par with an 8-over third round as they improved by three strokes as a team from the second round tally.

“We hit good shots today,” said head coach Bruce Brockbank. “But then we’d follow up poorly in the next hole by three-putting and not making critical shots to save strokes. We know we’re a good team, but we’re not getting it done with our chipping and putting.”

Robbie Fillmore had the best finish of the tournament for BYU as he ended up in 32nd place overall at 4-over-par. He played a 3-over third round as he made two birdies and completed 11 holes at even-par on the day.

Junior Brady Johnson had the best round for the team as he shot 1-over to end the tourney tied for 39th overall at 5-over-par. He made three birdies in the final round along with 11 holes at par for the strong finish.

Nick Killpack scored the most birdies on the day with six to go along with six holes at even-par to finish with a 5-over third round. Freshman Jordan Rodgers scored a 2-over-par third round, improving his second-round finish by seven strokes. He made three birdies and 12 holes at par, two of the birdies coming on consecutive holes on the back nine.

Sophomore Esteban Calisto also scored a 2-over final round to complete the tournament at 6-over-par having played each round at 2-over 73. His impressive final mark included an eagle on the par-4 hole 14 and a birdie on the preceding hole. He also made 13 holes at par, iincluding five in a row on the front nine.

Redshirt freshman Daniel Reid picked up more experience as an individual golfer for the team and shot a respectable 4-over-par final round.

“We know how to make big shots and we prove that we can on some holes, but we’ve got to figure out how to capitalize on our opportunities,” Brockbank said. “To get ready for the Cougar Classic, we’ll keep working on our short game and paying attention to the small things.”

The PING Cougar Classic will be held April 24-25 at Provo’s Riverside Country Club.

2009 ASU Thunderbird Invitational
BYU
T32 Fillmore  69-74-74--217  +4
T39 Johnson   73-73-72--218  +5
T46 Calisto   73-73-73--219  +6
T67 Killpack  71-75-76--222  +9
T87 Rodgers   76-80-73--229  +16
T79 Reid*     73-77-75--225  +12
* - competed individually
The field
1  (28)Arizona State      -14
T2 (20)San Diego State     +4
T2     Denver              +4
4   (9)TCU                 +5
T5     UC-Irvine           +6
T5 (33)Arizona             +6
7      Arizona State (B)  +12
8  (34)Colorado State     +13
9  (38)Oregon             +14
10     Oklahoma           +16
11 (24)UNLV               +17
12     Ball State         +18
13 (36)Cal                +20
14     BYU                +21
15 (39)New Mexico         +24
16     Fresno State       +25
17     CS-Northridge      +28