Men's Golf Set to Defend WCC Championship Next Week
4/15/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
MALIBU, Calif. — The Pepperdine men's golf team is set to defend its 2015 West Coast Conference title next week in Northern California and will be looking to add to its WCC-best total of 18 league championships.
The #34 Waves head into the event as the top-ranked team in the conference, and they've had a record-setting year that has included eight top-five finishes. While four of the five members that made up last year's championship-winning team are still on the roster, talented newcomers are taking three of the five slots in the lineup this time around.
Unlike last year, when Pepperdine had to win the WCCs to move on to NCAA Regional play, the Waves should have their season continue regardless of what happens in the Bay Area.
EVENT INFO — The WCC Championships will be held at the Blackhawk Country Club in Danville, Calif. Teams will play a single round each day between Monday and Wednesday (April 18-20). On Monday, the Waves will tee off the first hole beginning at 9:40 a.m. Live scoring will be available at www.golfstat.com.
FIELD — In order of their Golfstat rankings, the nine-team tournament includes #42 Pepperdine, #52 Saint Mary's, #101 Santa Clara, #111 San Francisco, #119 Brigham Young, #130 San Diego, #135 Gonzaga, #154 Loyola Marymount and #164 Pacific.
PEPPERDINE LINEUP — The Waves' lineup consists of senior Frederick Wedel (The Woodlands, Texas/The Woodlands HS), freshman Sahith Theegala (Chino Hills, Calif./Diamond Bar HS), freshman Roy Cootes (Rolling Hills, Calif./Palos Verdes HS), junior Robbie Geibel (Pembroke Pines, Fla./American Heritage HS/Louisville) and junior Cody McManus (Phoenix, Ariz./Desert Vista HS).
RANKINGS — Pepperdine is ranked #34 by Golfweek/Sagarin and #42 by Golfstat ... Frederick Wedel is ranked #56 by Golfstat and #88 by Golfweek/Sagarin ... Sahith Theegala is ranked #97 by Golfstat and #105 by Golfweek/Sagarin.
TOURNAMENT HISTORY — Pepperdine has won 18 WCC men's golf championships (all of which have come since 1987). The Waves have also had 11 medalists (Cody McManus was the individual champion last year, giving the Waves their first winner since 2003).
Previous WCC finishes by Pepperdine's golfers in the lineup include: McManus T-13th in 2013, 1st in 2015; Wedel T-23rd in 2013, T-13th in 2014 and T-7th in 2015.
WEDEL — Senior Frederick Wedel is currently fifth all-time at Pepperdine with a career scoring average of 72.78. On other career charts, he ranks fifth in career below-par rounds (42), ninth in top-10 finishes (13), tied for 10th in top-20 results (19) and 10th in rounds played (134).
His 2015-16 scoring average of 71.06 would be #3 on the Waves' single-season list if he keeps it up. He's had four top-10 and six top-20 finishes this season, and has been under par in 15 of 32 rounds. Wedel was named the WCC's Golfer of the Month for October 2015.
Wedel made the All-WCC first team in 2015 and posted the ninth-best single-scoring season in program history (72.52).
As a junior, Wedel set the Pepperdine 54-hole record with a 20-under 196 (64-63-69) in winning the Warrior Princeville Makai Invitational, and his 9-under 63 in the second round tied the school's 18-hole record. He holds the two-best 54-hole scores in school history after finishing with a 16-under 197 this season at the 2015 Alister MacKenzie Invitational.
Wedel also earned All-WCC honorable mention as a sophomore in 2014. He played in his second straight U.S. Amateur Championship this past summer (he made the semifinals of the 2014 event).
THEEGALA — Freshman Sahith Theegala has had a brilliant first year thus far. His scoring average of 71.14 is on a pace to rank #4 on the Waves' single-season list. Fourteen of his 29 rounds have been below par. He's had six top-20 finishes in 10 events. Theegala won the Junior World Golf Championships three times (at the ages of 6, 8 and 10) .
COOTES — Freshman Roy Cootes is third on the team with a 72.52 scoring average. He's had five top-20 finishes and 12 below-par rounds. Cootes was a three-time Daily Breeze Player of the Year.
GEIBEL — Junior Robbie Geibel, a transfer from Louisville, was the 2014 American Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year. His first year at Pepperdine has been a good one thus far, with a 72.84 scoring average and two top-20 finishes.
McMANUS — Junior Cody McManus is the defending medalist at the WCC Championships. He earned All-WCC first team honors in 2015 and was honorable mention in 2013. He has a scoring average of 73.27 this season.
PRESEASON HONORS — Both Frederick Wedel and Cody McManus made the preseason All-WCC team and the Waves were picked to finish second in the coaches' poll.
RECORDS FALL — The Waves have rewritten the record book this season. Pepperdine posted seven straight top-five finishes to set a new school record (the old mark was six in the spring of 1996). The Waves also finished at par or better in each of those seven events. Before that run, it has never happened more than twice in a row, and seven times in a single season is a program record (the old mark was five in 2002-03). The Waves have a total of eight top-five finishes (the record is nine in 1995-96 and 2001-02). There have also been some outstanding scores, including: • Low 54 (#1): -33 at Alister MacKenzie Invitational • Low 54 (#8): -20 at Warrior Princeville Makai Invitational • Low 54 (#10-tied): -17 at Bill Cullum Invitational • Low 36 (#1): -23 at Alister MacKenzie Invitational • Low 36 (#2-tied): -21 at Warrior Princeville Makai Invitational • Low 18 (#2-tied): -17 at Alister MacKenzie Invitational • Low 18 (#2-tied): at Warrior Princeville Makai Invitational • Low 18 (#4): -14 at Bill Cullum Invitational
ROSTER — Former Pepperdine All-American Michael Beard is in his fourth season as the Waves' head coach. The roster breakdown is two seniors, three juniors, one sophomore and three freshmen. The Waves have five returning letterwinners, one transfer and three true freshmen.
SOUTHWESTERN JONES INVITATIONAL — The last two seasons, the Waves brought back a home tournament and called it the Jones Invitational. It has now merged with the long-time Southwestern Intercollegiate, held at North Ranch Country Club in Westlake Village, Calif., and is titled the Southwestern Jones Invitational. Fifteen teams converged on the course on February 29 and March 1. USC was victorious and the Waves came in second.
BEARD — Michael Beard returned to Pepperdine in December 2012 after spending the previous season-and-a-half as an assistant at Arizona State. Beard competed for the Waves between 1999-2002 and was a GCAA All-American honorable mention selection in both 2000 and 2002. He was the medalist at the 2000 NCAA West Regional and the 2002 WCC Championships and was a four-time All-WCC first teamer. He still ranks first in total rounds played (162) and fourth in career scoring average (72.72) at Pepperdine. After playing professionally for several years, he served as an assistant coach at Pepperdine for one season and helped the Waves to make the 2011 NCAA Championships.
FOLLOW ONLINE — The squad has sites on both Twitter (@PeppGolf) and Facebook (/PeppGolf). You can also follow the coaches at @CoachMBeard and @Akirakossian on Twitter.
PEPPERDINE GOLF HISTORY — Thanks to its victory at the 1997 NCAA Championships, Pepperdine will always be known on a national level for its outstanding men's golf program. The Waves have made eight appearances at the NCAA Championships since 1993 and have achieved NCAA Regional berths in 20 of the last 24 years. In the West Coast Conference, they've won a league-best 18 championships since 1987 and have finished either first or second in 22 of the last 29 years. The Waves have been successful sending player to the pros and had a program-best four alums on the PGA Tour in 2015, while Jason Gore and Michael Putnam remain on the top tour in 2016.
ABOUT PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY — Pepperdine boasts a one-of-a-kind athletic department with unprecedented success for a school of its size. The Waves have won NCAA Division I championships in five different men's sports — one of just 17 schools to have accomplished this feat — and nine overall. Of this elite group, Pepperdine has the smallest undergraduate enrollment, is the only school without football and is the only university that has not been affiliated with a "major" conference. The Waves have won a total of 25 team or individual national championships in their history. Pepperdine has also earned the Division I-AAA All-Sports Trophy, an award based on postseason success that's given to the top non-football school, three times (most recently in 2011-12). Located in scenic Malibu, Calif., the university overlooks the Pacific Ocean and its campus and athletic facilities are regularly voted among the nation's most beautiful. Pepperdine, which is affiliated with the Church of Christ, ranks #52 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.
