Fresno State Athletics
Monday, September 30
Fresno, CA (Fort Washington Country Club)
Fresno State
vs
Nick Watney Invitational
Photo by: Keith Kountz
’Dogs grab early lead, finish 4th
10/1/2019 5:00:00 PM | Men's Golf
Fresno State took the lead in the first hour of the final round before BYU rallied down the stretch of the 2019 Nick Watney Invitational at Fort Washington Country Club.
FRESNO, Calif. --- The Fresno State men's golf team grabbed an early lead on Tuesday morning en route to a fourth-place finish in the 2019 Nick Watney Invitational at Fort Washington Country Club in northeast Fresno.
The 56th-edition of the now two-day, three-round tournament featured low scores by the top contenders, which included Fresno State, BYU, Long Beach State, San Jose State and San Diego, as the wind picked up on picturesque day in the San Joaquin Valley.
Fresno State's Michael Cliff (tied for 14th, -6) and Matthew Sutherland (tied for 16th, -5) both finished in the Top 20 of the 92-player field, with Tommy Stephenson (tied for 21st, -3) and Kevin Huff (tied for 27th, EVEN) also in the top 30. Fresno State's Tyler Gardner delivered a second straight counting score with a 1-under-par 70 on Tuesday to back up a 4-under-par 67 he shot on the final 18 holes on Monday afternoon.
BYU used a tournament-best final round 16-under-par 268 to finish 30-under-par for the tournament to capture the team title and Long Beach State's Hunter Epson defeated BYU's Peter Kuest on the second sudden-death playoff hole. Both Epson and Kuest made a par on 18 (1st playoff hole) and Epson made a birdie on 15 (2nd playoff hole) to win the individual championship.
The inaugural Fresno State Classic was held in 1964 and the event was renamed the Nick Watney Invitational in the fall of 2014.
"We had a nice performance this week," Fresno State head coach Chad Spencer said. "We got in position to win and just didn't have the back nine that we wanted, but we are in a good place heading into next week."
Fresno State will return to action next Monday and Tuesday when the Bulldogs travel to play in the Alister Mackenzie Invitational, which is hosted by Cal at Meadow Club in Fairfax, Calif. – just north of San Francisco.
Nick Watney Invitational
Fort Washington Country Club (Fresno, Calif.)
Par 71, 6729 yards
1. BYU: 281-273-268=822 (-30)
2. Long Beach State: 274-280-273=827 (-25)
3. San Jose State: 280-280-269=829 (-23)
T-4. Fresno State: 283-272-278=833 (-19)
T-4. San Diego: 281-279-273=833 (-19)
6. UC Santa Barbara: 288-280-278=846 (-6)
7. CSUN: 280-280-290=850 (-2)
8. Seattle U: 296-286-271=853 (+1)
9. Pacific: 284-282-289=855 (+3)
10. Sacramento State: 292-284-280=856 (+4)
11. Gonzaga: 287-294-280=861 (+9)
12. UC Irvine: 296-282-287=865 (+13)
13. Cal Poly: 297-286-285=868 (+16)
14. CBU: 287-296-290=873 (+21)
15. UC Riverside: 302-301-309=912 (+60)
Fresno State Leaderboard
T-14. Michael Cliff: 69-67-71=207 (-6)
T-16. Matthew Sutherland: 71-73-69=208 (-5)
T-21. Tommy Stephenson: 73-69-68=210 (-3)
T-27. Kevin Huff: 71-70-72=213 (EVEN)
T-74. Tyler Gardner: 85-67-70=222 (+9)
"Fresno State Athletics: The Pride of the Valley" – The Bulldog Foundation creates championship experiences for Fresno State student-athletes as they strive for excellence in the classroom, in competition, and in life. To become a BDF member, please call 559-278-7160.
The 56th-edition of the now two-day, three-round tournament featured low scores by the top contenders, which included Fresno State, BYU, Long Beach State, San Jose State and San Diego, as the wind picked up on picturesque day in the San Joaquin Valley.
Fresno State's Michael Cliff (tied for 14th, -6) and Matthew Sutherland (tied for 16th, -5) both finished in the Top 20 of the 92-player field, with Tommy Stephenson (tied for 21st, -3) and Kevin Huff (tied for 27th, EVEN) also in the top 30. Fresno State's Tyler Gardner delivered a second straight counting score with a 1-under-par 70 on Tuesday to back up a 4-under-par 67 he shot on the final 18 holes on Monday afternoon.
BYU used a tournament-best final round 16-under-par 268 to finish 30-under-par for the tournament to capture the team title and Long Beach State's Hunter Epson defeated BYU's Peter Kuest on the second sudden-death playoff hole. Both Epson and Kuest made a par on 18 (1st playoff hole) and Epson made a birdie on 15 (2nd playoff hole) to win the individual championship.
The inaugural Fresno State Classic was held in 1964 and the event was renamed the Nick Watney Invitational in the fall of 2014.
"We had a nice performance this week," Fresno State head coach Chad Spencer said. "We got in position to win and just didn't have the back nine that we wanted, but we are in a good place heading into next week."
Fresno State will return to action next Monday and Tuesday when the Bulldogs travel to play in the Alister Mackenzie Invitational, which is hosted by Cal at Meadow Club in Fairfax, Calif. – just north of San Francisco.
Nick Watney Invitational
Fort Washington Country Club (Fresno, Calif.)
Par 71, 6729 yards
1. BYU: 281-273-268=822 (-30)
2. Long Beach State: 274-280-273=827 (-25)
3. San Jose State: 280-280-269=829 (-23)
T-4. Fresno State: 283-272-278=833 (-19)
T-4. San Diego: 281-279-273=833 (-19)
6. UC Santa Barbara: 288-280-278=846 (-6)
7. CSUN: 280-280-290=850 (-2)
8. Seattle U: 296-286-271=853 (+1)
9. Pacific: 284-282-289=855 (+3)
10. Sacramento State: 292-284-280=856 (+4)
11. Gonzaga: 287-294-280=861 (+9)
12. UC Irvine: 296-282-287=865 (+13)
13. Cal Poly: 297-286-285=868 (+16)
14. CBU: 287-296-290=873 (+21)
15. UC Riverside: 302-301-309=912 (+60)
Fresno State Leaderboard
T-14. Michael Cliff: 69-67-71=207 (-6)
T-16. Matthew Sutherland: 71-73-69=208 (-5)
T-21. Tommy Stephenson: 73-69-68=210 (-3)
T-27. Kevin Huff: 71-70-72=213 (EVEN)
T-74. Tyler Gardner: 85-67-70=222 (+9)
"Fresno State Athletics: The Pride of the Valley" – The Bulldog Foundation creates championship experiences for Fresno State student-athletes as they strive for excellence in the classroom, in competition, and in life. To become a BDF member, please call 559-278-7160.
Players Mentioned
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