March 22, 2005
STEVINSON, Calif. - The winds whipped up scores on the final day of the Stevinson Ranch Invitational, making for a tight finish among several District 5 teams as the Missouri men finished fourth out of 14 teams in the California Central Valley on Tuesday.
Wind gusts of over 20 mph led to the 80-player field averaging 79.8 strokes for the round at the 7,206-yard, par-72 layout at Stevinson Ranch GC on Tuesday, over four strokes higher than the 75.7 average through the first two rounds on Monday.
Kansas ran away with the team title, posting an aggregate team score of 872 to win by a tournament-record 20 strokes. The inflated scores caused the teams around Missouri to jockey around; only two strokes separated the six teams behind the Jayhawks. Kansas State shot the best round of the day, a 9-over 297 to jump from eighth into a tie for second with Nebraska in the final standings. Mizzou was alone in fourth a stroke back, following their 314, while Denver, Wichita State and host Colorado were another stroke behind.
Junior Ben Scott (Lancashire, United Kingdom / St. Theodore's HS) led the Tigers on Tuesday with a 4-over 76 to tie him for eighth place with classmate Chris Mabry (Leawood, Kan. / Bishop Miege HS), who shot a 78. It is the third straight tournament that Mabry has finished or tied as Mizzou's low placer, while Scott earned his team-leading fourth top-10 finish.
Freshman Chris Zeller (Branson, Mo. / Branson HS), competing as a scoring member for the first time this season, had a third-consecutive solid round with a 79 to finish tied for 28th at 228. Sophomores John Kelly (St. Louis, Mo. / Christian Brothers College HS) and Shawn Jasper (Marthasville, Mo. / Francis Howell North HS / Newman Univ.) both posted 81s to round out the Tiger scoring; Kelly tied for 34th, while Jasper finished in a tie for 48th.
KU's Kevin Ward claimed medalist honors by six strokes despite closing with a 4-over 76 on Tuesday.
"It's a bit of a letdown to finish just a stroke behind two teams that we're fighting against for regional positioning, but we took another step toward that today," Head Coach Mark Leroux said. "I'm pleased with their ability to fight. On a day like today, it's easy to pack it in after a few bad holes and think that your score isn't going to count. You end up with an 86 when you play like that, but they stuck in there and battled.
"It's nice to see the work Chris Zeller's been putting in paying off. He saved bunch of shots each round for us. He probably works at it harder than anybody. That'll kind of rub off on some of the other guys, and remind them that you get what you put into it, which shows on a day like today."
The Tigers take a week off before resuming play Apr. 4-5 (Mon-Tue.), at the Belmont Invitational in Franklin, Tenn.
MIZZOU MEN'S GOLF
at the Stevinson Ranch Invitational - Stevinson, Calif.
Stevinson Ranch GC - 7,205 yards / par 72
FINAL TEAM STANDINGS (top five) - 1. Kansas, 286-287-299--872; 2. (tie), Kansas State, 298-297-297--892 and Nebraska, 288-296-308--892; 4. Missouri, 289-290-314--893; 5. (tie), Colorado, 293-292-309--894; Denver, 291-294-309--894; and Wichita State, 295-294-305--894.
INDIVIDUAL STANDINGS (top five plus other MU finishers) - 1. Kevin Ward (KU), 68-64-76--208; 2. Ben Kern (KSU), 71-68-75--214; 3. Edward McGlasson (CU), 70-69-76--215; 4. Tyler Docking (KU), 72-74-70--216; 5. Jimmy Cunningham (DEN), 70-72-75--217; T8. Ben Scott (MU), 72-71-76--219 and Chris Mabry (MU), 70-71-78--219; T28. Chris Zeller (MU), 75-74-79--228; T34. John Kelly (MU), 72-77-81--230; T48. Shawn Jasper (MU), 79-74-81--234.