Men's Golf Begins Spring Season at The Prestige

MALIBU, California – After winning twice in the fall and attaining a top-15 national ranking, the Pepperdine men's golf team looks to maintain its high level of play as the spring season begins on Monday with The Prestige, presented by Charles Schwab.

EVENT INFO – The Prestige will be held at the par-71, 7,100-yard Greg Norman Course at PGA West in La Quinta, California. There will be a single round each day between Monday and Wednesday (February 18-20). Live scoring will be available via Golfstat. The tournament will have live streaming available at Golfweek.com on Tuesday and Wednesday.

FIELD – In addition to Pepperdine, the 15-team field includes host UC Davis, Arkansas, East Tennessee State, Iowa State, LSU, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, Oregon, San Diego State, Stanford, Stirling (Scotland), UCLA and Utah.

PEPPERDINE LINEUP – The Waves' lineup consists of junior Joshua McCarthy (Danville, Calif./De La Salle HS), junior Clay Feagler (Laguna Niguel, Calif./Dana Hills HS), freshman Derek Hitchner (Minneapolis, Minn./The Blake School), senior Roy Cootes (Rolling Hills, Calif./Palos Verdes HS) and freshman Joe Highsmith (Lakewood, Wash./Bellarmine Prep).

RANKINGS – Pepperdine is currently rated #13 by Golfweek/Sagarin, #14 by Golfstat and #14 in the Bushnell/Golfweek coaches poll ... Clay Feagler is #26 by Golfweek/Sagarin and #31 by Golfstat ... Joshua McCarthy is #45 by Golfweek/Sagarin and #75 by Golfstat.

EVENT HISTORY – This is Pepperdine's 18th visit to The Prestige since 2000. The Waves have finished second three times, including each of the last two years. Clay Feagler was medalist last year.

2018-19 TEAM HIGHLIGHTS – The Waves won two fall tournaments for only the second time in program history and for the first time since 2007. Both produced multiple record scores. The Waves won the Alister MacKenzie Invitational by 11 shots with a school-record score of 52-under. Then they won the Royal Oaks Intercollegiate by two shots with a score of 28-under (the sixth-best score in program history). The Waves also set school records for 18 holes (final-round 22-under) and 36 holes (30-under) at the MacKenzie. The Waves have recorded four of the best 10 rounds in school history this fall. Pepperdine has finished no worse than fifth.

2018-19 INDIVIDUAL HIGHLIGHTS – The Waves had two individual medalists in the fall. RJ Manke won his first college title at the Alister MacKenzie Invitational in record fashion. He smashed the Waves' records for 54 holes (22-under) and 18 holes (final-round 10-under) to win by four shots. Clay Feagler won his third career title at the Royal Oaks Intercollegiate, as he finished in a three-way tie for first with a 4-under 206. All three of his victories have come in 2018. Joshua McCarthy had four top-10 finishes in five starts.

2018-19 HONORS – The Waves were a unanimous choice by the WCC's coaches to repeat as conference champions in the preseason poll ... Clay Feagler, Joshua McCarthy and Sahith Theegala were named to the preseason All-WCC team ... Joe Highsmith was listed at #9 among Golfweek's top freshmen in the nation ... Clay Feagler was named WCC Player of the Month for October.

ROSTER – The Waves' roster consists of three seniors, two juniors, two sophomores and two freshmen. All five players that were part of last year's record-setting lineup at the WCC Championships are back, but Sahith Theegala -- a two-time All-American, a three-time All-WCC first team honoree and a member of the 2018 USA's Arnold Palmer Cup squad – is currently out with a wrist injury and plans to redshirt 2018-19. Clay Feagler and Joshua McCarthy have each been All-WCC twice. Feagler was medalist at the 2018 WCC Championships and McCarthy was an individual qualifier for the 2018 NCAA Championships. Roy Cootes is also a previous All-WCC honoree.

PEPPERDINE GOLF – 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 nine appearances at the NCAA Championships since 1993 and have achieved NCAA Regional berths in 23 of the last 27 years. In the West Coast Conference, they've won a league-best 19 championships since 1987 and have finished either first or second in 25 of the last 32 years. Seventh-year head coach Michael Beard, who has earned a conference-record three consecutive WCC Coach of the Year awards, leads the Waves.

ONLINE — The squad is on Twitter (@PeppGolf), Facebook (/PeppGolf) and Instagram (peppgolf). You can also follow @CoachMBeard and @blainewoodruff on Twitter.

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 18 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, California, 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 #46 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.

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Players Mentioned

Roy Cootes

Clay Feagler

Joe Highsmith

Derek Hitchner

RJ Manke

Joshua McCarthy

Sahith Theegala

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