April 8, 2015
Eight top-25 teams and five of the nation's top-10 players highlight an elite field vying for top honors this weekend at the 69th Western Intercollegiate.
The longest running men's college golf tournament west of the Mississippi River takes place Saturday and Sunday, April 11-12, at the famed Alister MacKenzie designed Pasatiempo Golf Club in Santa Cruz, Calif.
#2-Arizona State, #3-Texas, #8-Washington, #11-UCLA, #13-Stanford, #14-Oregon, #16-Southern California, and #22-California according to the April 7 Golfstat rankings top the field.
Host San José State (#99), San Diego State (#34), UTEP (#84), UC Irvine (#104), Arizona (#111), and Hawai'i (#184) are also battling for a team championship. Stanford returns in 2015 as the defending Western Intercollegiate team champion. Last year marked the ninth time the Cardinal had taken the title, tying Fresno State for second all-time. San José State's 12 Western Intercollegiate titles leads the way.
Ninety-six players will play 36 holes Saturday, and conclude the 54-hole event Sunday with the final round on the 6,615-yard, par 70 course. Each day will begin with a shotgun start at 8:15 a.m. PT and the teams will follow a play six, score five format.
Fourteen players in this year's field have combined to win 22 collegiate events in 2014-15. San José State's Cody Blick has two victories of his own this season at the Price's Give `Em Five Invitational and the Bandon Dunes Championship. Blick enters The Western with a scoring average right at 70.0, good for 11th in the country. He is ranked 27th in the Golfstat Cup and 82nd in the World Amateur Golf Rankings.
Washington's Cheng-Tsung Pan (#1), Stanford's Maverick McNealy (#2) and Jon Rahm (#3) and Max Rottluff (#5) of Arizona State, have combined to win 11 times this season. They enter The Western as the top-four of 26 players ranked inside the Golfstat Cup's top-100. The winner will be fitted with the Blue Jacket, awarded annually to the Western Intercollegiate medalist.
There is no admission charge to watch the 69th Western Intercollegiate, and parking is free. Live stats for both days of action will be provided by Golfstat.