May 31/08, from the BC Golf News
BC's Authorative Golf News Source

For the second time in four years a native of Abbotsford, BC and a former Canadian Junior champion has finished among the top two in the most prestigious Collegiate Championship in the United States.

University of Washington sophomore Nick Taylor fired a final-round score of 3-over par 75 to finish in a tie for runner-up honors at the 111th NCAA Div. I Men's Golf Championships held at Purdue's Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex in West Lafayette, Indiana Saturday. Taylor, who led the Huskies to a seventh-place team finish, completed the 72-hole tournament at 1-over 289, just three shots behind NCAA champion Kevin Chappell from UCLA (2-under 286).

Taylor is the third Husky in UW history to finish second or higher at the NCAA Championships, and the second to do so in the past four years. James Lepp, the four-time British Columbia Amateur medalist, who also hails from Abbotsford and is also a member of the prestigious Ledgeview Golf and Country Club, became the first Canadian to take the NCAA crown when he won the title in 2005. UW's Troy Kelly of the U.S. was an NCAA runner-up in 1999. Lepp is now a member of the Canadian Pro Tour.

The University of Washington moved up two spots on the team leaderboard during Saturday's final round, carding an 18-over 306 to finish the tournament at 56-over 1208. This was the fourth top-10 NCAA finish for the Huskies in the past five years.

"When you consider that just a few weeks ago we were wondering whether or not we'd even get into the regional, and now we're in the top seven in the country, that's just amazing," Husky head coach Matt Thurmond said. "It was fun to play this week without many expectations. We felt great to be here and we knew could play really well and do what we did, if not more. But we didn't feel like we had pressure to do so. I'm just really proud of the guys and the way they competed, the poise they showed."

The story for UW was, of course, the play of Taylor, finishing the day tied with Indiana's Jorge Campillo for NCAA runner-up honors. Taylor's fourth-round score was one shot better than Chappell's and his second-round score of 6-under 66 remained as the tournament low.

"It feels really good," Taylor said of his second-place national finish. "I played pretty good for most of the day. I hit the ball really well. It was tough out there today to get close to the hole and really have any chance to birdie. It even got more difficult with the wind and standing above the ball, not knowing if the wind is going to effect it or not. I was proud of how I played. I didn't think I'd be that close to Kevin (Chappell) in the end, but I played really well today and I'm happy with the way I finished."

Taylor's final round saw him sink one birdie and four bogeys on what many thought was the most difficult day in terms of the windy conditions on the course. The average fourth-round score was 78.19.

"Nick's the main reason we finished in the top-10 as a team," Thurmond said. "He was absolutely awesome in the postseason. To have a guy finish second at regionals and nationals, what more can you ask for?"

Also finishing in the top-25 was senior Zach Bixler who tied for 23rd at 15-over 303 in his final tournament as a Husky. Bixler carded a final-round score of 4-over 76. Freshman Tze Huang Choo tied for 55th at 22-over 310 with a 6-over 78 on Saturday. Rounding out the UW lineup were sophomore Darren Wallace of Langley, BC, who tied for 64th (25-over 313) and junior John Wise who finished 78th (35-over 323).

The Pac-10 ended up dominating the NCAA Championships, with four of the top seven teams hailing from the Conference of Champions. Just three shots separated the top three teams. UCLA (42-over 1194) edged Stanford (43-over 1195) for the title, while USC came in third place (44-over 1196).

Another Canadian from Abbotsford who played well in the NCAA final was University of Louisville (Kentucky) junior Adam Hadwin who was 22-over par for the tournament after shooting 78-76-74-82—310. Hadwin finished tied for 49th while his Cardinals wound up in 10th place, their best finish ever.

The future bodes well for the Huskies who will return four of their five players that competed at the NCAA Championships, including Taylor. All four of those Huskies were making their first-ever NCAA Championship appearances in West Lafayette this week.

2008 NCAA DIVISION I MEN'S GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPS
Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex; West Lafayette, Ind.
Par 72; 7,450 yards

Final Team Leaderboard
1. UCLA 297-293-298-306--1194 (+42)
2. Stanford 309-288-296-302--1195 (+43)
3. USC 297-294-300-305--1196 (+44)
4. Oklahoma State 298-296-301-305--1200 (+48)
5. Clemson 301-288-302-310--1201 (+49)
6. Kent State 301-297-302-304--1204 (+52)
7. Washington 305-290-307-306--1208 (+56)
8. Charlotte 306-295-306-303--1210 (+58)
8. Georgia 303-293-305-309--1210 (+58)

Final Round - Top Five Individuals
1. Kevin Chappell, UCLA 69-73-68-76--286 (-2)
2. Jorge Campillo, Indiana 75-70-72-72--289 (+1)
2. Nick Taylor, Washington 75-66-73-75--289 (+1)
4. Rickie Fowler, Oklahoma State 74-77-70-73--294 (+6)
4. Sihwan Kim, Stanford 77-72-74-71--294 (+6)