By Cal Aboud, SDA Communications Student Assistant
Through 36 holes of play at the Alister MacKenize Invitational hosted at the Par-71 Meadow Club (6,734 yards) in Fairfax, Calif., senior Ki Taek Lee and the Arizona State men's golf team sit in contention, positioned in first and tied for third respectively.
Spearheaded by tournament leader Lee (12-under-par with rounds of 66 and 64), the Sun Devils sit just four shots off the lead at 20-under (275-273). Lee, who entered play with six collegiate top-10 finishes to credit, will seek to earn the first medalist honors of his 25-tournament Sun Devil career. The Maroon and Gold under the helm of first-year head coach Matt Thurmond aim to attain the program's first victory since the team captured the 2016 Albuquerque NCAA regional last spring.
"Ki Taek is making the game look really easy right now," said head coach Matt Thurmond. "He is incredibly focused. He knows what he needs to do and he is showing that discipline you need to just do it over and over again. He is really impressive and continues to assault par every round. Jared stayed really patient all day then finally the floodgates opened and he had a barrage of birdies."
Lee last year played 18 rounds in seven tournaments and had one round in the 60s. This season in his first five rounds he has four rounds in the 60s.
FIRST ROUND RECAP
Paced by strong play from Lee, senior Jared du Toit, and freshman Alex Del Rey Gonzalez, the Maroon and Gold signed off on a cumulative nine-under 275. Three weeks removed from recording a career-best second-place finish at the Fighting Illini Invitational, Lee opened play at a torrid pace, carding six birdies to one bogey in the morning's outing. Team captain du Toit shook off a consecutive bogey start playing the remainder of the round at 5-under par, en route to posting a 3-under 68. Slotted in the two spot in the team's five player rotation, Del Rey Gonzalez shined bright early, playing the round at 3-under 68. Collecting four birdies over a six-hole stretch, Del Rey Gonzalez jockeyed for position atop the leaderboard with Lee for a better portion of the round. Junior Tobias Eden and freshman Blake Wagoner rounded out the rotation each finishing the round at two-over 73.
SECOND ROUND RECAP
Picking up where he had left off early, Lee quickly garnered sole possession of first-place courtesy of bogey-free 7-under 64, marking the best round of his collegiate career. Opening his outing on the par-3 5th to the tune of consecutive birdies, Lee refused to relent the top spot carding birdies on holes 13, 17, and three as well as an eagle on the par-5 15th. Lee's Sun Devil counterpart du Toit, nearly matched his exceptional, tournament-best 64, as the top-Canadian Amateur improved three strokes from the morning's round, signing off on a six-under 65. Propelled by a round highlighted by a four-under four-hole stretch, du Toit climbed 15 spots into a sixth-place tie with California's Collin MoriKawa. Flipping the page on his previous outing of 73, Blake Wagoner fired an impressive two-under 69 to move back within the tournament's top-50. Eden and Gonzalez shot rounds of 75 and 76 respectively.
"I loved the way we finished today. Blake (Wagoner) was so tough late. The wind picked up and it got cold. Scores started to climb, but we finished strong and made up some ground," noted Thurmond. "We can still improve so much on what we did today, but we put ourselves in a good position to compete tomorrow. There is nothing better being a member of the final group of the final round. We want to be there every event.
FINAL ROUND
The Sun Devils are slated to tee it alongside St. Mary's (CA), Pepperdine, and Oregon State beginning at 8:50 PT. Live scoring will once again be available via Golfstat.com.
KI TAEK LEE BEST CAREER ROUNDS
64, Alister MacKenzie Invitational in Fairfax, Calif. (Oct. 10, 2016/second round)
66, Alister MacKenzie Invitational in Fairfax, Calif. (Oct.. 10, 2016/first round)
66, Warrior Princeville Makai Invitational in Princeville, Hawaii (Nov. 4, 2014/second round)
67, Fighting Illini Invitational in Olympia Fields, Ill. (Sept. 16, 2016/first round)
67, Prestige at PGA West in La Quinta, Calif. (Feb. 16, 2016/second round)
67, Alister MacKenzie Invitational in Fairfax, Calif. (Oct. 13, 2014/first round)
67, ASU Thunderbird Invitational in Tempe, Ariz. (Mar. 21, 2014/second round)
67, Itani Quality Homes Collegiate in Pullman, Wash. (Sept. 29, 2014/second round)
KI TAEK LEE BEST CAREER FINISHES
2016 OLYMPIA FIELDS INVITATIONAL 67-73-69=209/-1/T2
2015 WYOMING SOUTHERN 73-70-73=216/T5
2015 ASU THUNDERBIRD 74-68-68=210/E/T8
LAST TIME OUT
Senior Ki Taek Lee posted the best finish of his 24-tournament Sun Devil career at the Olympia Fields Country Club/Fighting Illini Invitational to lead the Sun Devil men's golf team in its season opener Sept. 16-18. Lee tied for second and was the only player in the 78-player field to go 4-under on the par-3 holes. He posted 13 birdies, tied for second-most in the field, and shot a 1-under 209 (67-73-69). ASU went 302-289-291 at the 11th annual event, held at the par-70/7,353-yard course in Olympia Fields, Ill., to tie for 11th.
Through 36 holes of play at the Alister MacKenize Invitational hosted at the Par-71 Meadow Club (6,734 yards) in Fairfax, Calif., senior Ki Taek Lee and the Arizona State men's golf team sit in contention, positioned in first and tied for third respectively.
Spearheaded by tournament leader Lee (12-under-par with rounds of 66 and 64), the Sun Devils sit just four shots off the lead at 20-under (275-273). Lee, who entered play with six collegiate top-10 finishes to credit, will seek to earn the first medalist honors of his 25-tournament Sun Devil career. The Maroon and Gold under the helm of first-year head coach Matt Thurmond aim to attain the program's first victory since the team captured the 2016 Albuquerque NCAA regional last spring.
"Ki Taek is making the game look really easy right now," said head coach Matt Thurmond. "He is incredibly focused. He knows what he needs to do and he is showing that discipline you need to just do it over and over again. He is really impressive and continues to assault par every round. Jared stayed really patient all day then finally the floodgates opened and he had a barrage of birdies."
Lee last year played 18 rounds in seven tournaments and had one round in the 60s. This season in his first five rounds he has four rounds in the 60s.
FIRST ROUND RECAP
Paced by strong play from Lee, senior Jared du Toit, and freshman Alex Del Rey Gonzalez, the Maroon and Gold signed off on a cumulative nine-under 275. Three weeks removed from recording a career-best second-place finish at the Fighting Illini Invitational, Lee opened play at a torrid pace, carding six birdies to one bogey in the morning's outing. Team captain du Toit shook off a consecutive bogey start playing the remainder of the round at 5-under par, en route to posting a 3-under 68. Slotted in the two spot in the team's five player rotation, Del Rey Gonzalez shined bright early, playing the round at 3-under 68. Collecting four birdies over a six-hole stretch, Del Rey Gonzalez jockeyed for position atop the leaderboard with Lee for a better portion of the round. Junior Tobias Eden and freshman Blake Wagoner rounded out the rotation each finishing the round at two-over 73.
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SECOND ROUND RECAP
Picking up where he had left off early, Lee quickly garnered sole possession of first-place courtesy of bogey-free 7-under 64, marking the best round of his collegiate career. Opening his outing on the par-3 5th to the tune of consecutive birdies, Lee refused to relent the top spot carding birdies on holes 13, 17, and three as well as an eagle on the par-5 15th. Lee's Sun Devil counterpart du Toit, nearly matched his exceptional, tournament-best 64, as the top-Canadian Amateur improved three strokes from the morning's round, signing off on a six-under 65. Propelled by a round highlighted by a four-under four-hole stretch, du Toit climbed 15 spots into a sixth-place tie with California's Collin MoriKawa. Flipping the page on his previous outing of 73, Blake Wagoner fired an impressive two-under 69 to move back within the tournament's top-50. Eden and Gonzalez shot rounds of 75 and 76 respectively.
"I loved the way we finished today. Blake (Wagoner) was so tough late. The wind picked up and it got cold. Scores started to climb, but we finished strong and made up some ground," noted Thurmond. "We can still improve so much on what we did today, but we put ourselves in a good position to compete tomorrow. There is nothing better being a member of the final group of the final round. We want to be there every event.
FINAL ROUND
The Sun Devils are slated to tee it alongside St. Mary's (CA), Pepperdine, and Oregon State beginning at 8:50 PT. Live scoring will once again be available via Golfstat.com.
KI TAEK LEE BEST CAREER ROUNDS
64, Alister MacKenzie Invitational in Fairfax, Calif. (Oct. 10, 2016/second round)
66, Alister MacKenzie Invitational in Fairfax, Calif. (Oct.. 10, 2016/first round)
66, Warrior Princeville Makai Invitational in Princeville, Hawaii (Nov. 4, 2014/second round)
67, Fighting Illini Invitational in Olympia Fields, Ill. (Sept. 16, 2016/first round)
67, Prestige at PGA West in La Quinta, Calif. (Feb. 16, 2016/second round)
67, Alister MacKenzie Invitational in Fairfax, Calif. (Oct. 13, 2014/first round)
67, ASU Thunderbird Invitational in Tempe, Ariz. (Mar. 21, 2014/second round)
67, Itani Quality Homes Collegiate in Pullman, Wash. (Sept. 29, 2014/second round)
KI TAEK LEE BEST CAREER FINISHES
2016 OLYMPIA FIELDS INVITATIONAL 67-73-69=209/-1/T2
2015 WYOMING SOUTHERN 73-70-73=216/T5
2015 ASU THUNDERBIRD 74-68-68=210/E/T8
LAST TIME OUT
Senior Ki Taek Lee posted the best finish of his 24-tournament Sun Devil career at the Olympia Fields Country Club/Fighting Illini Invitational to lead the Sun Devil men's golf team in its season opener Sept. 16-18. Lee tied for second and was the only player in the 78-player field to go 4-under on the par-3 holes. He posted 13 birdies, tied for second-most in the field, and shot a 1-under 209 (67-73-69). ASU went 302-289-291 at the 11th annual event, held at the par-70/7,353-yard course in Olympia Fields, Ill., to tie for 11th.