PRINCEVILLE, Kaua'i – Three Waves birdied their final hole and that proved to be the difference as the Pepperdine men's golf team rallied to win its second tournament of the fall season, the Warrior Princeville Makai Invitational, on Tuesday.
The Waves finished with a 28-under 836 (273-284-279) at the par-72 Princeville Makai Golf Club. The Waves had small leads after both the first and second rounds, but fast-charging Missouri went ahead today. It was close throughout, but freshman
Joe Highsmith birdied his final two holes, and
Joshua McCarthy and
RJ Manke each birdied their last hole, giving the Waves a two-shot win over the Tigers and a three-shot final advantage over Louisville.
The 54-hole total of 28-under is the sixth-best score in program history. Earlier this month, the Waves won the Alister MacKenzie Invitational with a record 52-under. It's the second time in program history that Pepperdine has won two fall tournaments, with the last time coming in 2007.
The Waves, ranked 11th by Golfstat, posted wins over #15 Louisville, #37 Ole Miss and #44 Purdue, as well as West Coast Conference foes Loyola Marymount and San Diego among the 20 teams in the field.
Remarkably, the Waves won despite putting only one player in the top 20, though all five finished below-par for the tournament.
PLAYER SCORES
- Junior Joshua McCarthy (Danville, Calif./De La Salle HS) took third place with a 13-under 203 (66-67-70). The 13-under ties the seventh-best individual score in program history and is a personal best. His 2-under final round included five birdies. He had a team-best 16 birdies for the tournament.
- Junior Clay Feagler (Laguna Niguel, Calif./Dana Hills HS) tied for 22nd with a 5-under 211 (68-72-71). He had two eagles during his final round, both on par-4s, and he had two birdies.
- Freshman Joe Highsmith (Lakewood, Wash./Bellarmine Prep) tied for 35th with a 2-under 214 (69-77-68). His 4-under was the Waves' best score of Tuesday and it included six birdies, including three in his final four holes.
- Sophomore Austin Murphy (Morgan Hill, Calif./Bellarmine College Prep) also tied for 35th with a 2-under 214 (71-70-73). He had four birdies today.
- Sophomore RJ Manke (Lakewood, Wash./Bellarmine Prep) tied for 42nd with a 1-under 215 (70-75-70). His 2-under final round included seven birdies.
QUOTABLE
Pepperdine Coach
Michael Beard said: "I'm proud of how our guys competed this week. It was very tight down the stretch and it was great to see Joe, RJ and Josh clutch up. Everyone contributed, which kept us in it. It's a great team win."
UP NEXT
Pepperdine's final tournament of the fall season is the Saint Mary's Invitational from November 5-7.
THE NUMBERS
Team Scores: 1. Pepperdine 273-284-279=836; 2. Missouri 286-275-277=838; 3. Louisville 286-281-272=839; T4. Cal State Fullerton 282-286-277=845; T4. UAB 278-288-279=845; T6. Sam Houston State 283-281-284=848; T6. Loyola Marymount 291-276-281=848; 8. Ole Miss 276-295-278=849; 9. Louisiana 285-290-278=853; 10. Purdue 281-293-281=855; 11. UMKC 293-289-278=860; 12. East Tennessee State 289-294-278=861; 13. Cal Poly 291-286-287=864; 14. McNeese State 292-277-298=867; T15. Denver 290-293-288=871; T15. Utah Valley 287-288-296=871; 17. San Diego 295-291-286=872; 18. Hawai'i 299-285-290=874; 19. Idaho 294-297-284=875; 20. Army 294-305-288=887.
Top Individuals: 1. Blake Elliott (McNeese State) 68-63-67=198; 2. John Murphy (Louisville) 71-65-65=201;
3. Joshua McCarthy (Pepperdine) 66-67-70=203; 4. Beau Briggs (Ole Miss) 66-73-66=205; 5. Jackson Suber (Ole Miss) 70-70-66=206.
