No. 14 Stanford men’s golf made the short drive down to Santa Cruz over this Masters weekend for the 71st annual Western Intercollegiate, hosted by San Jose State at Pasatiempo Golf Club. It was the team’s first competition since its first win of the season at the Goodwin last weekend over top-ranked USC. The Cardinal couldn’t quite find the same magic, but the team took home a distant second place, trailing only the Trojans in the fifteen team field.
USC held the lead for the entirety of the tournament, winning with a final team score of even par over the three rounds. Stanford posted a team score of 18 over par in its runner-up performance. In close third, fifth-ranked Oregon shot 20-over as a team. Rounding out the top five were Pepperdine at 28-over and Washington at 29-over.
Stanford stayed in contention through 36 holes and was just three shots back headed into the final round. However, the last 18 holes brought tough conditions, as all 15 teams in the field were over par. Stanford struggled more than most, going 20-over in the final round, the highest score of any of the teams that finished in the top nine.
Despite the tough finish, Stanford boasted several impressive individual performances, with three players in the top five individually. Senior Maverick McNealy shot a 2-under 68 in both his first and second rounds and 74 in the third en route to an even par fourth-place finish on the par 70 golf course. Sophomore Isaiah Salinda and junior Bradley Knox both tied for fifth place at one over par. Salinda was also under par in both of his first two rounds, carding a 69 and a round-high 66, before a tough third round of 76 to bring him to one over par for the tournament. Knox provided a steady presence, shooting 71, 70, and 70 in his three rounds.
USC’s Justin Suh took home medalist honors, winning by four strokes with a 5-under finish. There were five hole-in-ones made over the three rounds, two of which came from UC Berkeley freshman William Aldred, who delivered aces in both the second and third rounds.
Stanford is next back in action on April 28 at the Pac-12 Championships.
Contact Jamie Macfarlane at jamiemac ‘at’ stanford.edu.