GREG BARNETT
Sports Assistant
The Pepperdine men’s golf team started off the season with a bang last weekend coming away with a victory at the William H. Tucker Intercollegiate in Albuquerque, N.M. The Waves won the tournament with a three-day total of even par 864 to win by four shots over San Diego State University and seven shots over the University of Colorado.
Senior Jesse Barnsley, an Albuquerque native, led the team by shooting a three-day total of 12-under par and winning the individual title. Fellow senior Eric Shriver finished tied for second, shooting a total of four-under par. Senior Colin Wilcox finished tied for 26th, shooting six-over par. Red shirt sophomore Carl Smith shot 10-over par and sophomore Andrew Widmar shot 20-over par.
“It was a great way to start the year,” Head Coach John Geiberger said. “It gives our team a lot of confidence to know that we can win a close tournament.”
Barnsley was named by Golfworld Magazine as the national college golfer for September based on for his performance in Albuquerque.
“Jesse had a break out event for him and led us to the end,” Geiberger said. “Golfworld is recognizing his performance and when you win by eight shots you’re dominating the field. It not only gets publicity for him, but our program as well.”
Pepperdine had a three-shot lead after the first two rounds over Colorado and San Diego State. The Waves finished strong with a final round of one-over par 289, led by Shriver’s two under 70. Pepperdine finished third in this tournament last year and beat a strong field this year that included the University of Arizona, Ohio State University and the host University of New Mexico.
Barnsley led the tournament the entire way shooting a career best opening round six under par 66 on Friday morning, which included six birdies and an eagle. He followed that round up in the afternoon with a 5-under par 67 that included five consecutive birdies in the middle of the round. His 11-under par 133 led the tournament by seven shots after the first day. Barnsley finished out the tournament with a solid 1-under par 71 to blitz the field by eight strokes.
“It’s a great feeling to get my first collegiate win in my hometown and to play solid throughout three rounds,” Barnsley said. “Being able to handle the pressure and go wire to wire feels amazing.”
Next up for the Waves is the Husky Intercollegiate in Bremerton, Wash., where the Waves will look to keep up the momentum on a great start to the season.
09-20-2007
