Cal Rallies to Earn Berth at NCAA Men's Golf Championships

Mired in 12th place among 14 teams after the first round of the NCAA Reno Regional, the Cal men’s golf team made an impressive rally over the final two days and earned qualifying spot in the NCAA Championships.

Needing a top-five finish, the Bears were 20 over par after the first round at the Montreux Golf and Country Club. They responded by shooting 11 under through the final 36 holes, carding a 7-under score on Tuesday before closing with a minus-4 on Wednesday to claim the final qualifying spot.

Cal wound up at 9 over par for three rounds, one stroke better than Mississippi State, which was at even par through two days before blowing up with a final-round score of plus-16. 

The Bears will advance to the NCAA nationals for the second straight year. The event will be held at Omni La Costa in Carlsbad, Calif., from May 23-28.

"It was a total team effort and an incredible effort by all. To be 20-over-par in the first round and in 12th place out of 14 teams, and then battle back through the wind, snow and frost delays to advance is as resilient as it gets,” Cal coach Michael Wilson said. 

“The Bear will not quit, though. The Bear will not die. We can't wait to get down to La Costa.”

BYU won the Reno Regional with a three-day score of 15 under, thanks to going 13 under on Tuesday. Virginia (minus-11), Texas (minus-8) and San Diego (plus-8) secured the remaining NCAA berths at Reno.

Ziqin Zhou, a freshman from Shenzhen, China, and Charlie Berridge, a senior from Scarsdale, NY, posted the Bears’ top individual scores, tying for 17th place at 1 over par. Zhou shot a 3-under 69 on Wednesday and Berridge logged a 71.

Daniel Heo, a junior from Cypress, Calif., who shot 7 over in the first round, also had a final-round 71 to wind up at 3 over and tied for 25th place. 

The Bears overcame a wild couple days of tough elements and stoppages to get through.

Heavy winds and low temperatures halted play early on Monday, when the Bears managed to complete just seven holes. They were stuck in 12th place after finishing the first round on Tuesday, then played well for 13 or 14 holes in the afternoon, moving up seven spots to fifth place before play was stopped at 8 p.m. due to darkness.

By the end of the second round on Wednesday, the Bears had fallen back into eighth place.

The tide turned when Heo eagled the 13th hole and Berridge and Zhou carded birdies on the 12th and 13th, respectively, in the third round. 

Cal is among five ACC teams that will play in the 30-team NCAA Championships, joining Virginia, Wake Forest, Georgia Tech and Florida State.

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