Fresno State Athletics
Golf Wraps up the Season
6/14/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
June 14, 2001
The Road to Durham
Sophomore Nick Watney (Dixon, Calif.) was the lone Bulldog to compete in the 2000-01 NCAA Championships hosted by Duke. Watney was the lowest scoring individual not on a qualifying team at the NCAA West Regional at Oregon State in May. Watney finished the finals scoring a 2-under 286 and T13th place. He scored 1-under in round one and followed with 2-under in round two. After a rain delay on day three, Watney concluded the round the next morning even. He then finished the final round slipping to 1-over.
Fresno State NCAA History Under Coach Watney
1977 19th 1987 9th1978 22nd 1989 14th1979 12th 1990 5th1980 10th 1992 16th1981 18th 1993 22nd1983 12th 1994 17th1984 22nd 1998 22nd1985 21st 2000 13th1986 13th 2001 T13th
Watney Garners All-American Honors
After his T13 finish at the NCAA Championships, Nick Watney was named to the Golf Coaches' Association of America PING second team All-America. The GCAA All-America Committee selected the individuals based upon play throughout the 2000-01 season, including the NCAA Championships. To be named to the PING All-American teams, a player must be named to the PING All-District teams or finish in the top 15 at the NCAA Championships. Watney was one of only three sophomores selected to the second team.
`Dogs Tie for Sixth at WAC
Fresno State tie Hawai'i for sixth place in the 2001 WAC Championship tournament held in Tulsa, Okla. on April 30-May 2. The Bulldogs struggled with the difficult course amidst 40-mph gusts of wind to score 299-308-317-924. Leading the `Dogs in scoring was junior Jonathon Echols (Hanford, Calif.). TCU won the tournament with 896, defeating Tulsa by just one stroke. Tulsa, however, had the individual winner in David Inglis whose score of 216 defeated TCU's Scott Volpitto by two strokes.
Academic Excellence
Three of the 2001 Bulldog golfers were honored at the Kiwanis Torch of Excellence dinner, which honors student athletes with a 3.0 GPA or better. Junior Dustin Smith (Crescent City, Calif.) and freshmen Daniel Timmons (Carson City, Nev. City) and Eric Witherall (Carlsbad, Calif.) were all honored for their academic excellence.
National Recognition
Over the course of the season, Nick Watney has shown his face in a number of national locations. It started in the summer with Watney qualifying for the US Amateur. Watney Defeated Public Links Champion D.J. Trahan if the first round of match play which lead him to be named one of Golf World Magazine's seven top sophomores in the country. After his winning finish of 200 at San Diego, Golfweek Magazine named him the national player of the week. A consistent top finisher, Watney has remained the highest rated golfer of the Western Athletic Conference by Golfstat, peaking at fifth this season. Watney also appeared in the "Faces in the Crowd" section of Sports Illustrated Magazine. He has also been selected to play on the USA/Japan team, where he will travel to Japan at the end of June to compete.
Echols Tops Fresno Amateur
Junior Jonathon Echols became the second player of the season to win a tournament when he won the Fresno City Amateur on May 28. Echols' 69-67-68-204 winning score was the lowest since the tournament went to 54 holes in 1992. Echols was also the first player in the tournament's history to go three rounds in the 60's.
Golfers Honored at Year-end Banquet
The Bulldogs celebrated the conclusion of the regular season with the annual awards luncheon and scramble tournament held at Belmont Country Club on Thursday, May 10. Nick Watney was honored as the season's MVP as well as the Most Improved Player. Dustin Smith won the Bulldog award as well as being named for academic excellence. Senior Wes Lovell (Cockeysville, Md.) was honored for his season as the team captain as well as being the lone graduate. Freshman Eric Witherall and Daniel Timmons were also honored for academic excellence.
Watney Named WAC Player of the Year
Nick Watney has chalked-up another honor for his excellence on the links. Watney was named to the all-WAC first team and the 2001 Player of the Year. Watney has been the WAC's highest ranked player for most of the season and finished seventh at the WAC Championship. A consistent member of the top-10 club, Watney shared medalist honors at the Inverness Collegiate in September and followed with a second-place outing at the John Burns Intercollegiate in February. In March, Watney took top honors at the San Diego Invitational and then tied for fifth at the CG Morris Invite. Ranked, as high as fifth by Golfstat during the season, Watney's final ranking for the year is 14th. In 41 rounds he boasts a 71.46 average, the lowest average in Fresno State history.
NCAA ACTIONMay 30- Wed.-Sat. NCAA Championships Duke G.C. T13th Jun. 2
LAST ACTIONApr. 30- Mon.-Wed. WAC Championships Forest Ridge G.C. T6th May 2May 17-19 Thu.-Sat. NCAA West Regional Trysting Tree G.C. 15th
