Nov. 4, 2006
Notre Dame Continues Western Swing At CordeValle
Looking to build upon its improved play of late, the Notre Dame men’s golf team return from a three-week hiatus when it takes part in the CordeValle Collegiate on Monday and Tuesday at the CordeValle Golf Club in San Martin, Calif. The high-powered tournament is hosted by second-ranked UCLA and will feature five top-10 opponents among its 17-team field.
The Irish have not played since Oct. 16-17, when they turned in a solid seventh-place showing in The Prestige at PGA WEST, carding a season-low three-round score of 879 (+15). Notre Dame placed three players among the top 25 on the individual ladder, with sophomore Josh Sandman leading the way with a tie for 10th place behind a career-best 213 (-3).
As a team, Notre Dame has lowered its season stroke average to 298.44 and has moved up to 41st in the Golfstat rankings and 46th in the current Golfweek survey. Senior All-America candidate Cole Isban is the top Irish individual in the polls, standing 35th in the Golfweek survey with a team-best 72.89 stroke average.
Quoting Coach Kubinski
“This week presents a great opportunity for our program. The field is one of the strongest of the year. We have built momentum with each event thus far and feel we’re ready to take on the best teams in the country.
“I liken what Cole (Isban) means to us as to what Brady Quinn means to Notre Dame football. If Cole doesn’t play well, it’s difficult for us to win – but he knows his role and flourishes in it. Josh (Sandman) has looked very good in practice this week and gave us a glimpse of his enormous talent at PGA West. I’m also looking for Adam (Gifford) to continue his steady play. Of course, Eddie (Peckels) returns to an event where he was in the Top 10 after 36 holes last year, and Greg (Rodgers) should enjoy this layout as it suits his game.
“As with any event, if we can get our putters going and play to our strengths, we’ll have a chance to win. We’re certainly a program on the rise and are just looking for a staging point for our next ascension in the rankings. We now know how to compete. We just need to learn how to win.”
Dates and Times
Teams will play two rounds (36 holes) on Monday, with the opening round teeing off via a shotgun start at 7 a.m. PT (10 a.m. ET). The second round will begin immediately following the conclusion of round one. Competitors will then return to the course Tuesday for the third and final round, also beginning at 7 a.m. (PT) – teams will go off from the No. 1 and No. 10 tees via pre-assigned start times based upon the 36-hole team standings.
Following The Irish
Live scoring for the CordeValle Collegiate will be available through the Golfstat web site (www.golfstat.com). Complete results following each day’s action also will be posted on the official Notre Dame athletics web site (www.und.com). In addition, the latest information from the CordeValle Collegiate, including results, scheduling updates and weather delays, will be available on the Notre Dame Sports Hotline (574-631-3000).
New this year is the Irish ALERT system, which provides fans with regular updates on Notre Dame’s progress in the CordeValle Collegiate through text messages sent right to their cell phone. For more information or to register for this free service, visit the official Notre Dame athletics web site (www.und.com).
The Tournament Format
A total of 17 five-man teams (85 participants, plus the possibility of several golfers also competing on an individual basis) will be taking part in the CordeValle Collegiate. Conventional collegiate golf team scoring rules will apply, with the lowest four scores in the five-man lineup for each round counting toward the team total. Scores by golfers competing on an individual basis do not count to the team score.
The Teams
Besides Notre Dame and tournament host UCLA, the remaining teams in the field for the CordeValle Collegiate are: Arizona, Arkansas, Augusta State, California, Coastal Carolina, Lamar, Northwestern, Oklahoma, Pepperdine, Santa Clara, South Carolina, Stanford, TCU, USC and Washington.
According to the latest GCAA/Bridgestone Top 25 poll (released Oct. 26), six ranked teams – No. 5 UCLA, No. 7 Stanford, No. 8 Coastal Carolina, No. 9 USC, No. 15 Lamar and No. 24 TCU – are scheduled to take part in this week’s tournament. Three other teams received votes in the current coaches’ poll – Washington (18 votes; 29th place), South Carolina (three votes; tie-36th place) and Northwestern (two votes; 38th place).
Meanwhile, the Nov. 3 ratings in the Golfweek/Sagarin Performance Index show that 13 of the top 50 teams will be on hand for the CordeValle Collegiate. Leading the way is No. 3 UCLA, followed by No. 5 Coastal Carolina, No. 8 Lamar and ninth-ranked Stanford. Also on the first page of the Golfweek ratings are No. 13 USC, No. 22 TCU, No. 35 Washington, No. 36 Northwestern, No. 37 Pepperdine, No. 44 South Carolina, No. 46 Notre Dame, No. 48 California and No. 50 Arizona.
In addition, the most recent Golfstat rankings (unveiled Nov. 1) indicate 11 of this week’s participants appearing in that service’s Top 50. UCLA is tops at No. 2, followed by fourth-ranked Coastal Carolina, No. 6 USC, No. 8 Lamar, 10th-ranked Stanford and No. 23 TCU. Appearing in the second half of the Golfstat Top 50 this week are: No. 33 Northwestern, No. 40 Pepperdine, 41st-ranked Notre Dame, No. 43 Washington and No. 47 South Carolina. Augusta State (55th) and California (59th) are just outside the first page of the Golfstat rankings.
Head-To-Head
Notre Dame has faced seven of the other 16 teams in the CordeValle Collegiate field, amassing a combined 2-7 (.222) record against those clubs. The Irish record vs. the rest of the CordeValle Collegiate teams breaks down as follows: Augusta State (1-0), California (1-0), Lamar (0-2), Northwestern (0-1), Stanford (0-2), USC (0-1) and UCLA (0-1).
The Course
The championship course at the CordeValle Golf Club was designed by renowned golf architect Robert Trent Jones, Jr., and is considered one of his finest layouts. It measures 7,119 yards and will play as a par-72 course.
Situated on 270 acres of gently rolling terrain in a pastoral valley located approximately 25 miles southeast of San Jose in San Martin, Calif., the CordeValle Golf Club utilizes the natural elevation changes (150 feet over the 18-hole course) of its peaks and canyons, enhanced by broad meadows, streams, striking sycamore trees and mature California oak trees. It demands numerous strategies and club selections throughout each round, due in part to its strategically-placed bunkers, challenging bays and other topographical twists. The land surrounding the course is part of a private preserve numbering more than 1,000 acres, untouched by residential or commercial development.
Last Time Out: The Prestige at PGA WEST
Getting strong performances from the top half of its lineup, Notre Dame rose one spot to finish seventh in the 15-team Prestige at PGA WEST, which concluded Oct. 17 in La Quinta, Calif., on the Greg Norman Course (par 72/7,156 yards) at the famed PGA WEST facility. The Irish carded a season-low 282 (-6) in the final round, finishing the 54-hole event at 15-over par 879 (302-295-282), 30 shots behind tournament co-host and ninth-ranked Stanford. The third-round 282 matched Notre Dame’s sixth-best 18-hole team score ever, and it was the best for the Irish since they closed with a school-record 272 (-16) at the 2006 BIG EAST Championship last April.
Sophomore Josh Sandman completed arguably the best tournament effort of his budding college career, firing a personal-best 67 (-5) in the final round and ending up tied for 10th place in the 78-man field with a three-round total of three-under par 213 (76-70-67), also a career-low. Sandman now has placed 20th or better in five of his eight college events thus far, with his outing at The Prestige being the second top-10 finish of his career – he wound up six shots behind tournament medalist Zack Miller of Stanford.
Senior All-America candidate Cole Isban has been rock solid in his play all season long, and this event was no exception, as the Irish veteran finished in 14th place at one-under par 215 (71-73-71), marking his third consecutive top-20 finish and seventh in his last 11 tournaments. Like Sandman, senior co-captain Adam Gifford turned in a career-best scorecard at The Prestige, placing 25th with a personal-low score of four-over par 220 (76-74-70). Gifford’s 25th-place outing was his best tournament finish ever as a member of the Irish starting five, as was his closing-round 70 (-2), which also was the first under-par round of his career.
Three Tournaments, Three Aces For Irish
It would be difficult to script a much better start than Notre Dame freshmen Doug Fortner and Carl Santos-Ocampo have experienced this fall. Between them, the two Irish rookies have fired three aces in three tournaments, including matching holes-in-one in their respective college debuts 10 days apart.
Fortner was the first to card a “single” on Sept. 16 in the second round of the Gopher Invitational in Wayzata, Minn., pulling out a pitching wedge and sinking his tee shot on the par-3, 139-yard 17th hole at the Spring Hill Golf Club. Not to be outdone, Santos-Ocampo made his mark in the final round of the John Dallio Memorial (a “B” team event for the Irish) in West Chicago, Ill., using a 7-iron to bury his tee shot on the par-3, 175-yard third hole at the Prairie Landing Golf Club.
Santos-Ocampo was at it again on Oct. 10 in the final round of the Fighting Irish Gridiron Golf Classic. Playing into a stiff breeze, the diminutive Notre Dame freshman took an 8-iron to the tee of the par-3, fourth hole at the Warren Golf Course and promptly buried his 136-yard tee shot.
Both Fortner and Santos-Ocampo were featured in the Oct. 30 edition of Sports Illustrated’s “Faces in the Crowd” for their accomplishment, which is believed to be the first of its kind in NCAA Division I history.
Things You Should Know About The Irish
- Notre Dame is the three-time defending BIG EAST Conference champion (and three-time NCAA regional qualifier), winning the 2006 BIG EAST title with a dramatic 12-stroke comeback (second-largest in school and league history) in the final round to defeat Louisville on the first playoff hole. The Irish joined St. John’s as the only programs in the 26-year history of the BIG EAST Championship to win three consecutive titles on two separate occasions. The Irish recorded their first hat trick from 1995-97, while St. John’s posted a pair of “four-peats” from 1981-84 and 1986-89.
- Notre Dame’s impressive resurgence of late has been augmented by its play against nationally-ranked opponents. In fact, since Jim Kubinski took over as head coach in January 2005, the Irish have toppled 12 Top 25 teams (according to Golfweek), including seven last season.
- Senior Cole Isban is a prime candidate to become Notre Dame’s first All-American since 1980 (John Lundgren – honorable mention), coming off consecutive selections to the PING All-Midwest Region Team. Isban owns the school’s single-season and career stroke average (see chart on page 3), has qualified for the last three U.S. Amateur Championships, and is ranked 35th in the latest Golfweek individual rankings (as of Nov. 3).
- Kubinski himself has been nominated for a place on the 2007 GOLF Magazine Top 100 Teachers List, after being placed into consideration by the Indiana Section of the PGA. Approximately 400-500 people are chosen annually from the 30,000 PGA professionals nationwide for a few select places on the GOLF Magazine list, whose membership regularly carries over and includes such notables as Hank Haney, Butch Harmon, David Leadbetter and Rick Smith. The ’07 GOLF Magazine Top 100 selections will be announced later this month.
Next Up: Aloha Purdue Collegiate Invitational (Nov. 22-23)
Notre Dame will wrap up the fall portion of its 2006-07 schedule Nov. 22-23 when the Irish make their first-ever trip to Hawaii for the Aloha Purdue Collegiate Invitational. The unique tournament, which will include men’s and women’s events and is slated to conclude on Thanksgiving Day, will be held at the Kiahuna Golf Club in the town of Poipu on the island of Kauai. Some of the other participants in the nine-team men’s bracket are: Alabama, Clemson, Texas, Pepperdine and Virginia Tech.