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Saturday, May 29
Scottsdale, Ariz./Grayhawk GC
All Day
University of Louisville
vs
The NCAA Championship
Cards Move into a Tie for 12th at NCAA Golf Championship
May 29, 2021 | Men's Golf
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – University of Louisville head coach Ryan Blagg didn't know how teams would react to playing during the afternoon session of the NCAA Championship at the Grayhawk Golf Club on Saturday afternoon.
With temperatures reaching well over 90 degrees for the second round and the course drying out in the afternoon heat, the scores had the ability to skyrocket -- and for some schools that's exactly what happened.
However, not for the Cardinals, who actually improved by one shot and are at 17-over for the two days.
The Cardinals shot an 8-over-par 288 to jump into a tie with Georgia Tech for 12th place and are just six shots from the top eight. Louisville enters Sunday's play just four strokes ahead of the cut-line needed to qualify for the top 15 teams, as Texas Tech and Arkansas are tied for 14th place at 20-over-par 580.
The fourth and final round of stroke play is set for Monday, May 31, and the individual NCAA champion will be crowned following the completion of 72 holes of stroke play. The top eight teams following Monday's final round of stroke play will advance to the NCAA Match Play Championships. Quarterfinals and semifinals will be held on Tuesday, June 1, while the NCAA Championship match is scheduled for Wednesday, June 2.
After the second day, the Cardinals own a four-shot lead over the teams looking to reach the top 15 – the place needed to advance to Monday's fourth round.
"It was hard out there today," Blagg said. "I thought the heat and wind picked up today. The greens were fast and were dried out. The guys fought hard. We kind of struggled there through the midpoint of the round, but they closed with a bunch of birdies on the way in, which was huge."
"It puts us in the morning wave tomorrow morning, which is huge. We are six off the cut line for the match-play round so we are right where we need to be heading into tomorrow's round."
The Cardinals will tee off at 11 a.m. EST on Sunday off the first tee box and will be paired with Texas Tech and Arkansas.
After shooting an opening round of 78 on Friday, senior John Murphy responded with a 1-over-par 69 to move into a tie for 82nd place.
The senior from Ireland opened with a birdie on No. 2 to get his round headed in the right direction. He would play the back nine at 1-under with three birdies. He scored on No. 11 and contributed consecutive birdies on 16 and 17.
At the par 3 No. 16, Murphy knocked his tee shot to within a few feet and knocked home the putt. He was able to connect on No. 17 when he hit a 12-foot putt to help keep the Cardinals in contention to play in the morning and remain in the top 15.
"I just scored today," Murphy said. "I really didn't do anything different to my game. I was just able to score better than yesterday. I hit the ball well and was able to make a couple of key putts. It looks like we will be playing during the morning round tomorrow, which will be a big deal for us."
Matthias Schmid also shot a 1-under-par 69 to move into the top 20 and into a tie for 19th. After shooting 72 on Friday, the native of Germany birdied No. 1 and No. 4 before bogeys on three of the next four to put him at 1-over, but he responded with a birdie on No. 9 with a short putt.
Schmid would open his final nine holes of the day with seven consecutive pars before recording a critical birdie for the team on No. 17.
Veteran Devin Morley was subbed into the lineup on Saturday and played well enough to stabilize the group. He shot a 4-over-par 74, including a 3-over on the front. However, the senior responded by playing the backside at just 1-over.
Trevor Johnson, who led the Cards on Friday with a 68, shot a 7-over-par 77, and Jiri Zuska rounded out the top five by firing a 6-over-par 76.
With temperatures reaching well over 90 degrees for the second round and the course drying out in the afternoon heat, the scores had the ability to skyrocket -- and for some schools that's exactly what happened.
However, not for the Cardinals, who actually improved by one shot and are at 17-over for the two days.
The Cardinals shot an 8-over-par 288 to jump into a tie with Georgia Tech for 12th place and are just six shots from the top eight. Louisville enters Sunday's play just four strokes ahead of the cut-line needed to qualify for the top 15 teams, as Texas Tech and Arkansas are tied for 14th place at 20-over-par 580.
The fourth and final round of stroke play is set for Monday, May 31, and the individual NCAA champion will be crowned following the completion of 72 holes of stroke play. The top eight teams following Monday's final round of stroke play will advance to the NCAA Match Play Championships. Quarterfinals and semifinals will be held on Tuesday, June 1, while the NCAA Championship match is scheduled for Wednesday, June 2.
After the second day, the Cardinals own a four-shot lead over the teams looking to reach the top 15 – the place needed to advance to Monday's fourth round.
"It was hard out there today," Blagg said. "I thought the heat and wind picked up today. The greens were fast and were dried out. The guys fought hard. We kind of struggled there through the midpoint of the round, but they closed with a bunch of birdies on the way in, which was huge."
"It puts us in the morning wave tomorrow morning, which is huge. We are six off the cut line for the match-play round so we are right where we need to be heading into tomorrow's round."
The Cardinals will tee off at 11 a.m. EST on Sunday off the first tee box and will be paired with Texas Tech and Arkansas.
After shooting an opening round of 78 on Friday, senior John Murphy responded with a 1-over-par 69 to move into a tie for 82nd place.
The senior from Ireland opened with a birdie on No. 2 to get his round headed in the right direction. He would play the back nine at 1-under with three birdies. He scored on No. 11 and contributed consecutive birdies on 16 and 17.
At the par 3 No. 16, Murphy knocked his tee shot to within a few feet and knocked home the putt. He was able to connect on No. 17 when he hit a 12-foot putt to help keep the Cardinals in contention to play in the morning and remain in the top 15.
"I just scored today," Murphy said. "I really didn't do anything different to my game. I was just able to score better than yesterday. I hit the ball well and was able to make a couple of key putts. It looks like we will be playing during the morning round tomorrow, which will be a big deal for us."
Matthias Schmid also shot a 1-under-par 69 to move into the top 20 and into a tie for 19th. After shooting 72 on Friday, the native of Germany birdied No. 1 and No. 4 before bogeys on three of the next four to put him at 1-over, but he responded with a birdie on No. 9 with a short putt.
Schmid would open his final nine holes of the day with seven consecutive pars before recording a critical birdie for the team on No. 17.
Veteran Devin Morley was subbed into the lineup on Saturday and played well enough to stabilize the group. He shot a 4-over-par 74, including a 3-over on the front. However, the senior responded by playing the backside at just 1-over.
Trevor Johnson, who led the Cards on Friday with a 68, shot a 7-over-par 77, and Jiri Zuska rounded out the top five by firing a 6-over-par 76.
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