LA QUINTA, California – The #1 Pepperdine men's golf team is within striking distance of a third victory in a row but the Waves will need to make a bit of a comeback after dropping to second place following Tuesday's second round at The Prestige.
Pepperdine has a two-day total of a 9-under 559 (275-284) at the par-71 Greg Norman Course at PGA West. The Waves led by three entering today but now trail Texas by five strokes.
The Waves are going for their third straight victory after starting the spring season with wins at the Southwestern Invitational and Amer Ari Invitational and attaining a #1 ranking in the computer polls for the first time.
PLAYER SCORES
- Freshman William Mouw (Chino, Calif./Ontario Christian HS) had the Waves' best round today, a 2-under 69, which moved him up into a tie for second place with a 4-under 138 (69-69). He had a total of six birdies on the day. He had three birdies in a row on 3, 4 and 5, then had a stretch of three birdies in four holes on the back nine. He'll start the final round two shots back of the leader.
- Junior Joey Vrzich (El Cajon, Calif./Christian HS/Nevada) is also tied for second with a 4-under 138 (66-72). He had an eagle on the par-5 12th and two birdies today.
- Senior Sahith Theegala (Chino Hills, Calif./Diamond Bar HS) is tied for ninth with a 3-under 139 (67-72). He had three birdies today, all on the front nine.
- Sophomore Joe Highsmith (Lakewood, Wash./Bellarmine Preparatory School) is tied for 46th at 145 (73-72). He had two birdies on Tuesday.
- Junior RJ Manke (Lakewood, Wash./Bellarmine Preparatory School) is tied for 49th at 146 (75-71). He had four birdies today, including three in a row on holes 10, 11 and 12.
- Playing as an individual in a separate tournament at the par-72 Coral Mountain Golf Club, sophomore Derek Hitchner (Minneapolis, Minn./The Blake School) fired a 9-under 63 – one shot shy of the school record – to move into second place with an 11-under 133 (70-63). He had 10 birdies on the day, including a stretch of six consecutive birdies on holes 7 through 12.
UP NEXT
Wednesday's third and final round will begin at 8:40 a.m. for the Waves. They'll start on the first tee along with San Diego State, UCLA and Texas. Golfweek.com will have live streaming of the final round beginning at 10 a.m.
THE NUMBERS
Team Scores: 1. Texas 554;
2. Pepperdine 559; T3. UCLA 564; T3. San Diego State 564; 5. Texas Tech 565; 6. SMU 567; 7. Oregon State 568; 8. Oklahoma State 569; 9. Stanford 571; 10. LSU 573; 11. Iowa State 574; 12. Northwestern 578; 13. Arkansas 581; 14. Stirling 582; 15. UC Davis 583; 16. Wyoming 602.
Top Individuals: 1. Leo Oyo (San Diego State) 136;
T2. William Mouw (Pepperdine) 138;
T2. Joey Vrzich (Pepperdine) 138; T2. Travis Vick (Texas) 138; T2. Eddy Lai (UCLA) 138; T2. Spencer Tibbits (Oregon State) 138; T2. Ludvig Aberg (Texas Tech) 138; T2. Thomas Hutchison (UC Davis) 138.
