Men’s golf finishes in fourth

The USC men’s golf team closed out its fall season Wednesday with a disappointing third round at the Gifford Collegiate Championship in San Martin, Calif.

It’s in the hole · USC junior Steven Lim finished in 26th place at the Gifford Collegiate Championship in San Martin, Calif. Lim started off strong, shooting one-over-par 72 his first two rounds to move up to ninth place, but he finished with an eight-over-par 79 in difficult conditions on Wednesday. - Photo courtesy of USC Sports Information

Despite finding success during their second round of play and putting themselves in a position to battle for the top spot, the Trojan’s third-round play dropped them from third place into fourth. The difficult tournament course, CordeValle Golf Club, and high winds in the first and third rounds worked against the Trojans.

The team hit for a collective 39-over-par 1104 (378, 351, 375) to tie for fourth place. This score left them five strokes back from Northwestern, 17 strokes back from Stanford and 30 strokes back from the tournament champion UCLA. Also competing were Washington, Oregon, San Diego, Oklahoma, Arizona, Lamar, Long Beach State and Augusta State.

The top individual golfer for the Trojans was sophomore Martin Trainer, who tied for a career-best seventh place. He was the team’s only top-10 finisher of the tournament. Trainer hit for a one-over-par 72 in the third round, giving him a final score of two-over-par 215 (73, 70, 72). Trainer played well, matching bogeys with birdies (three of each) until his final hole, which he bogeyed to go one stroke above par.

Trainer said he was thrilled with his performance.

“I’m very happy about my finish. I really needed some evidence that I was making steps in the right direction and I think this is it,” Trainer said.

Next for the Trojans was freshman Ramsey Sahyoun, who finished in a tie for 18th place — also a career best. This was his second appearance for the Trojans. Sahyoun hit a one-over-par 72 in the third round, which left him at a seven-over-par 220 (79, 69, 72) on the tournament. In his final round, Sahyoun hit a double bogey, five bogeys and six birdies.

Sophomore T.J Vogel finished third for the Trojans, posting a four-over-par 75 on the final day to finish in a tie for 20th place with a eight-over-par 221 on the tournament (75, 71, 75). Vogel hit a double bogey, four bogeys and two birdies Wednesday, a performance that dropped him from 13th place to 20th.

Fourth for the Trojans was junior Steve Lim, who tied for 26th place. Lim finished with a 10-over-par 223 (72, 72, 79) following the first two rounds where he hit an impressive one-over-par 72. Lim had a disappointing eight-over-par 79 in the third to fall from ninth to 26th place. Lim hit a double bogey, nine bogeys and three birdies in his final round.

Freshman Jeffrey Kang finished fifth for the team, with a 12-over-par 225 (79, 69, 77) that put him in a tie for 38th place. Despite a promising second round, Kang hit seven bogeys and just one birdie in his third round for a six-over-par 77.

The final member of the Trojan squad was senior Bo DeHuff, who finished the tournament with a 24-over-par 237 (79, 78, 80) for 71st place. In his final round, DeHuff hit three double bogeys, five bogeys and two birdies for a nine-over-par 80.

The tournament concluded the fall season for the USC men’s golf team. Despite a disappointing fall season, the team remains optimistic for the months to come.

“We struggled a little bit. We still have a young team and we don’t have five guys who can consistently play well yet, but I think that will develop over the few months,” Trainer said. “I can guarantee that this team is going to be really strong by the end of the year when the national championships come around.”

The Trojans’ next tournament is the Mauna Lani Invitational in Kohala Coast, Hawaii, which will begin Feb. 2.