COMPLETE RESULTS | HIGHLIGHTS/RECAP
STOCKTON, California – The Pepperdine men's golf team completed one of the biggest comebacks in West Coast Conference Championships history on Saturday to win its second straight title, while sophomore
RJ Manke captured medalist honors via a playoff.
The Waves stood in seventh place after Thursday's first round, but moved up to second place, two shots back of San Francisco, after an outstanding Friday round. Pepperdine shot a 4-under 284 today, which put them at a 13-under 851 (289-278-284) at the par-72 Reserve at Spanos Park, three shots better than USF.
The Waves got big final rounds from
Roy Cootes (4-under 68), Manke (3-under 69) and
Joe Highsmith (2-under 70).
It's actually the second time in the last five years that the Waves rallied after being in seventh place following the first round. In 2015, Pepperdine was 10 strokes back but won the title at Saticoy Country Club. This time, the Waves overcame a 15-shot first-round deficit.
This was Pepperdine's 20th WCC title in program history, nine more than any other school. It's also the third team title of the season, the program's most since 2003-04.
PLAYER SCORES
- Sophomore RJ Manke (Lakewood, Wash./Bellarmine Preparatory School) finished tied atop the leaderboard with LMU's Riley Elmes after a 6-under 210 (69-72-69). Elmes was the clubhouse leader but Manke's birdie on 16, his fifth of the day, brought him back to a tie for first. The sudden-death playoff needed only one hole. On the par-4 first hole, Manke's second shot was within five feet, and he sank the birdie putt for his second individual victory of the season.
- Junior Joshua McCarthy (Danville, Calif./De La Salle HS) tied for sixth place with a 3-under 213 (70-66-77).
- Freshman Joe Highsmith (Lakewood, Wash./Bellarmine Prep) tied for eighth place with a 2-under 214 (73-71-70). He birdied 1 and 3, had his only bogey on 4, then had par on every hole the rest of the way except for a birdie on 16.
- Junior Clay Feagler (Laguna Niguel, Calif./Dana Hills HS) took 36th place at 226 (77-69-80).
- Senior Roy Cootes (Rolling Hills, Calif./Palos Verdes HS) missed Pepperdine's graduation ceremony on Saturday. He wasn't in the lineup at the start of the tournament but was utilized as a substitute on Friday, when he shot an even-par 72. He did even better on Saturday, firing a season-best 4-under 68 that included five birdies and just one bogey. He was perfect on the back nine with birdies on 11, 12 and 16.
QUOTABLE
Pepperdine Coach
Michael Beard said: "It feels great. After that first round, we were all disappointed. We said we've just got to give ourselves a chance. We shot 10-under that second day and that gave us hope. It's awesome. Our guys are so competitive."
UP NEXT
The NCAA Selection Show will be shown on Wednesday (May 1) at 6 p.m. on the Golf Channel. NCAA Regionals are May 13-15.
THE NUMBERS
Team Scores: 1. Pepperdine 289-278-284=851; 2. San Francisco 274-291-289=854; 3. Saint Mary's 283-293-284=860; 4. BYU 278-295-288=861; 5. Santa Clara 287-295-283=865; 6. Loyola Marymount 285-296-285=866; 7. Pacific 296-286-288=870; 8. Gonzaga 286-296-297=879; 9. San Diego 301-304-296=901.
Top Individuals: 1. RJ Manke (Pepperdine) 69-72-69=210*; 2. Riley Elmes (Loyola Marymount) 71-70-69=210; T3. Christoffer Palsson (San Francisco) 67-74-71=212; T3. Tim Widing (San Francisco) 71-69-72=212; T3. Chris Mogg (Gonzaga) 71-67-74=212.
* won in a playoff