Following a rain-shortened event at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort, the North Dakota State men’s golf returned to action at one of the most renowned golf courses in America, Torrey Pines. This famous course is best known for Tiger Woods’ marathon win over Rocco Mediate in the 2008 U.S. Open, but for NDSU, Torrey Pines was hosting the UC San Diego Invitational tournament.
Day 1
The Bison got off to a great start as they were tied for the team lead. Individually Ian Simonich was tied for the lead after round one as he shot a 70 (-2). Behind the leaders was Josh Galvin who sat one back at -1. Jack Johnson and Nate Adams were also in the top 15 as they placed eighth and fourteenth respectively. The Bison shared the team lead with Yale and Oklahoma Christian at +5 after one round of play.
Day 2
The second round of the tournament was dominated by NDSU as they shot four under par to take a five-shot lead after two rounds. Jack Johnson posted the best individual score of the round as well shooting a 68 (-4) to move into a tie for first place. Jake Skarperud also clawed his way into the top 20 by shooting a 71. Ian Simonich had an underwhelming day two as he slipped from first to seventh, but the team still had the team lead at +1 which was five shots better than Yale at +7 and Oklahoma Christian at +8.
Day 3
The final round was a continuation of the first two days as NDSU won the UC San Diego Invitational at Torrey Pines by nine shots. They finished on top with a final score of eight under par. Idaho finished in second at two over, and Oklahoma Christian claimed the final spot on the podium with a score of four over par. Jack Johnson built on a strong day two with a great day three posting a three-day score of eight under par to pull away from Idaho’s Johannes Houndsgaard who finished in second at five under par. Ian Simonich and Nate Adams each finished in the top ten as they finished sixth and seventh respectively. The victory is the second-straight team win this season after claiming the Loyola Intercollegiate last month. This was also the second straight event that a Bison golfer has earned medalist honors.
The team will now enjoy a week off before they play at the Highland Meadows Intercollegiate in Sylvania, Ohio, on April 15-16 before playing in Ohio State’s Robert Kepler Intercollegiate at Ohio State’s course in Columbus, Ohio, April 19-21.