PULLMAN, Wash. – In one of the most highly anticipated seasons for the Colorado men's golf team, expectations were high, but records weren’t expected to be broken this quickly.
For the first time in 44 years, the Buffs were ranked in a preseason poll at No. 25 in Golf Channel’s Division I poll.
On the first day of the two-day Washington State Palouse Collegiate, Colorado recorded its best opening 36-hole score and 18-hole score in team history with a 26-under 542 and 12-under 272 on Tuesday, followed by a 14-under 270 on Wednesday.
Junior Hunter Swanson led the Buffs on the opening day with a 10-under 65-67—132, placing him at third in the individual standings. His 6-under 65 opening round is tied for the best opening round in school history along with his personal lowest collegiate score. Senior Dylan McDermott trailed Swanson by only one stroke as he finished sixth on the day with a 9-under 70-63—133. McDermott’s second-round 63 tied for the lowest score in CU history thanks to an eagle with eight birdies, tying his single-round best.
Sophomore Brandon Knight followed with success, shooting a 5-under 66-71—137, putting him in a tie for 11th in the individual standings. His round one 5-under 66 was his personal best score of his collegiate career, beating out a 67 he shot in his freshman year at the Maui Jim Indivudal. Senior Justin Biwer was the final Buff of the quintet to finish under par as he shot a 1-under 71-70—141, tying him for 37th.
The lone Buff finishing over par was sophomore Ty Holbrook, who played out of the No. 1 spot, shooting a 1-over 73-70—143. Recording 10 birdies wasn’t enough to balance out his five bogeys and three double bogeys. Senior Freddy Eisenbies competed as an individual and not a part of the Buffalo quintet, shooting an even-par 72-70—142, putting him in a tie for 48th. The Buffs ended the first day in second place in the team standings, ten strokes behind first-place Utah and two in front of third-place Washington State.
Come the final day in the Pacific Northwest, the Buffs' success slightly dwindled as they finished with a team total of 8-under 276, marking the sixth time in school history that the Buffs opened their season with three consecutive rounds under par.
Swanson led the Buffs yet again with a third consecutive sub-70 score as he shot a 2-under 69, finishing his season opener in fourth place. His three-round total of 12-under 201 was the best in his collegiate career. McDermott followed shortly behind with an even-par 71, finishing with a 9-under 204 tying him for ninth.
Biwer started to heat up just a little too late as he shot the third-best score in round three with a 6-under 65, giving him a final scorecard of 7-under 206. He jumped 22 spots to end in a tie for 15th. Knight finished his play with a 1-over 72, giving him a 4-under 209 total. His tie for 25th marked his second top-25 finish in his collegiate career. To end the quintet, Holbrook shot an even-par 71 to tie for 48th with an overall scorecard of 1-over 214. Despite his score, he shot the second most birdies by a Buff with 14.
Eisenbeis’s individual campaign ended with a 2-under 69, moving him up 13 spots and tying for 35th. His final scorecard of 2-under 211 consisted of 22 consecutive holes of par or better, marking the second-best in his career. The final standings consisted of two former and one current Pac-12 team, with Utah topping the standings at 52-under, Colorado at 34-under and Oregon State at 28-under.
A dominant performance from start to finish for the Buffs only gave a glimpse of the promising season that is expected to come. The team will split up next week as four individuals will go compete in the Arizona State Papgo Individual while the team will travel to Fort Collins to compete in the Colorado State Ram Masters Invitational.
Cover photo courtesy of Ka'anapali Golf Course/CUBuffs.com
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