by Craig Morgan, thesundevils.com
Matt Thurmond has high hopes for the Arizona State men's golf opens play in the NCAA Regionals May 15-17 in Austin, Texas, looking for its eighth all-time regional title, which would be second only to Oklahoma State's 11.
However that pressure-packed event pans out for the No. 23 Sun Devils, Thurmond is confident about the program's future. The performance of his freshman class is the biggest reason.
Freshman Chun An Yu finished in a three-way tie for low freshman at the Pac-12 Men's Golf Championship at Boulder Country Club in Boulder, Colorado, at 6-over 216, which put him in a tie for 14th place.
Freshman Blake Wagoner finished tied for 20th at 8-over 218, and freshman Alejandro Del Rey Gonzalez finished tied for 52nd in the 72-man field at 15-over 229. Only three players finished under par at the event, which was staged in brutal conditions that included frigid temperatures and snow.
Yu and Gonzalez were both named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman team, which was announced on Friday, giving ASU two of the five spots on that team.
"Blake was not far behind and had a really good shot of being on that team as well," Thurmond said. "It's really hard to come into the Pac-12 as a freshman and play consistently, let alone, play well. It says a lot about our guys."
Yu has two top 10 finishes and won the National Invitational Tournament. Gonzalez posted a top-10 finish (8th) in that same event, and Wagoner finished fourth at the Thunderbird Invitational. A fourth freshman, Anthony Truong, should figure in the mix next season.
"I had a great meeting with Anthony," Thurmond said. "He didn't have the kind of year he wanted, but he's a relentless worker and I expect him to be a much bigger factor this fall. In a way, he's kind of the glue guy for that group; just a super nice guy that everyone likes."
Gonzalez is the emotional one of the group, a long hitter who can get on magical runs, but needs to fine-tune his technique and harness his passion. He fired a 1-under 69 on the final day of the Pac-12 Championships.
Wagoner has a big, strong frame and a game that steadily improved over the course of the season. Thurmond labels him a ball striker with controlled ball flight who must continue to hone his short game. He fired a 2-under 68 on the second day of the Pac-12 Championships -- the best round of any Sun Devil in the field.
Yu is working on developing more shots in his repertoire to go along with an already strong all-around game that has him ranked No. 26 in the current World Amateur Golf Rankings.
All three will play for the team score at the regional, along with all-Pac-12 First Team senior Jared du Toit and sophomore Jino Sohn. Sohn, a sophomore, is also making his first postseason appearance for ASU.
The Sun Devil are seeded fifth in the Austin Regional behind top seed and fourth-ranked Oklahoma State, No. 10 Wake Forest, No. 11 Texas and No. 20 Ole Miss. North Carolina State, Kansas, Liberty, Iowa State and Georgia Southern round out the top 10 seeds.
While the ultimate prize is not the same, Thurmond said the regionals might be the toughest test of a player's intestinal fortitude.
"It's the ultimate pressure cooker because of the stakes," he said. "Your whole season depends on it. For most people, if you make it to nationals (the NCAA Championships) it's a good season. If you don't it's not.
"I'm so excited to go with these freshmen and see what we can do. I have a lot of confidence in this group."
Matt Thurmond has high hopes for the Arizona State men's golf opens play in the NCAA Regionals May 15-17 in Austin, Texas, looking for its eighth all-time regional title, which would be second only to Oklahoma State's 11.
However that pressure-packed event pans out for the No. 23 Sun Devils, Thurmond is confident about the program's future. The performance of his freshman class is the biggest reason.
Freshman Chun An Yu finished in a three-way tie for low freshman at the Pac-12 Men's Golf Championship at Boulder Country Club in Boulder, Colorado, at 6-over 216, which put him in a tie for 14th place.
Freshman Blake Wagoner finished tied for 20th at 8-over 218, and freshman Alejandro Del Rey Gonzalez finished tied for 52nd in the 72-man field at 15-over 229. Only three players finished under par at the event, which was staged in brutal conditions that included frigid temperatures and snow.
Yu and Gonzalez were both named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman team, which was announced on Friday, giving ASU two of the five spots on that team.
"Blake was not far behind and had a really good shot of being on that team as well," Thurmond said. "It's really hard to come into the Pac-12 as a freshman and play consistently, let alone, play well. It says a lot about our guys."
Yu has two top 10 finishes and won the National Invitational Tournament. Gonzalez posted a top-10 finish (8th) in that same event, and Wagoner finished fourth at the Thunderbird Invitational. A fourth freshman, Anthony Truong, should figure in the mix next season.
"I had a great meeting with Anthony," Thurmond said. "He didn't have the kind of year he wanted, but he's a relentless worker and I expect him to be a much bigger factor this fall. In a way, he's kind of the glue guy for that group; just a super nice guy that everyone likes."
Gonzalez is the emotional one of the group, a long hitter who can get on magical runs, but needs to fine-tune his technique and harness his passion. He fired a 1-under 69 on the final day of the Pac-12 Championships.
Wagoner has a big, strong frame and a game that steadily improved over the course of the season. Thurmond labels him a ball striker with controlled ball flight who must continue to hone his short game. He fired a 2-under 68 on the second day of the Pac-12 Championships -- the best round of any Sun Devil in the field.
Yu is working on developing more shots in his repertoire to go along with an already strong all-around game that has him ranked No. 26 in the current World Amateur Golf Rankings.
All three will play for the team score at the regional, along with all-Pac-12 First Team senior Jared du Toit and sophomore Jino Sohn. Sohn, a sophomore, is also making his first postseason appearance for ASU.
The Sun Devil are seeded fifth in the Austin Regional behind top seed and fourth-ranked Oklahoma State, No. 10 Wake Forest, No. 11 Texas and No. 20 Ole Miss. North Carolina State, Kansas, Liberty, Iowa State and Georgia Southern round out the top 10 seeds.
While the ultimate prize is not the same, Thurmond said the regionals might be the toughest test of a player's intestinal fortitude.
"It's the ultimate pressure cooker because of the stakes," he said. "Your whole season depends on it. For most people, if you make it to nationals (the NCAA Championships) it's a good season. If you don't it's not.
"I'm so excited to go with these freshmen and see what we can do. I have a lot of confidence in this group."