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Sun Devils, Summerhays Lead Pac-12 Championship After Two Rounds

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Sun Devils, Summerhays Lead Pac-12 Championship After Two RoundsSun Devils, Summerhays Lead Pac-12 Championship After Two Rounds

The No. 4/2 Sun Devils Men's Golf team and Preston Summerhays hold team and individual leads at the halfway point of the 2023 Pac-12 Championship at the par-70, 6,727-yard Stanford Golf Course. 

Summerhays put together a masterful 11-under (64-65=129/-11) performance which included two eagles and 10 birdies. It's his fourth time this season scoring a 65-or-better on a par-70 course. He is tied for the lead with Stanford's Michael Thorbjornsen heading into the final 36 holes.

"Preston was impressive to watch today," said Associate Head Coach Thomas Sutton. "This morning's round he didn't miss a shot and it was a normal six under day for him. This afternoon he got off to a rough start and had to battle to keep it around par. For him to shoot five under after being two over through five was exactly what the team needed to keep our lead heading into tomorrow."

ASU shot 24-under (331-345=676/-24) on the day and leads second-place Colorado by four strokes heading into the final two rounds. The Sun Devils had four eagles, including three in the second round, and led scoring in Par 3's (-3) and Par 5's (-27).

"We came out firing in that first round," said Head Coach Matt Thurmond. "That was awesome. All year we've struggled a little on the second 18 of the 36 hole days. We seem to lose some steam. I thought we handled it pretty well and put ourselves in great position at the midway point. There's obviously tons of golf left but I'd rather have a good start than a bad start."

2023 PAC-12 CHAMPIONSHIP
APRIL 28-30, 2023
STANFORD GOLF COURSE
TEAM LEADERBOARD
Arizona State 331-345=676/-20/1
Colorado 344-336=680/-20/2
Washington 343-343=686/-14/3
Oregon 342-345=687/-13/4
Stanford 350-341=691/-9/5
Washington State 344-349=693/-7/6
Arizona 352-349=701/+1/7
California 351-353=704/+4/8
Utah 361-348=709/+9/9
Southern California 356-354=710/+10/10
Oregon State 351-362=713/+13/11
UCLA 366-348=714/+14/2

Four Sun Devils are in the top-16, including freshman Luke Potter who is tied for fourth after shooting a six-under (67-67=134/-6). It's the third time in his career shooting a 67, the second-lowest mark in his college career. 

Sophomore Josele Ballester finished the day tied for seventh after a five-under (64-71=135/-5) performance in the first two rounds. It's the second consecutive tournament he shot an opening-round 64, and the third time this season reaching the mark.

Freshman Michael Mjaaseth turned in consecutive sub-par rounds and is tied for 16th after finishing three-under (68-69=137/-3) after 36 holes. It's the first time since the Maui Jim Invitational on Sep. 9-10 that he has turned in consecutive rounds under 70.

Senior Ryggs Johnston carded a one-over (68-73=141/+1) and is tied for 34th after two rounds. He recorded seven birdies and an eagle in 36 holes. Sophomore Kiko Coelho rounded out the team with an eight-over (75-73=148/+8). He finished the second round with a team-high 16 pars.

FIRST ROUND
The Sun Devils opened the Pac-12 Championship with a historic first round, shooting a collective 331 (64-64-67-68-68), which included 29 birdies and an eagle. 

The 331 (-19) first-round score is the lowest score on a par-70, Pac-12 Championship course since at least 1990. Only once has a team scored lower than 340 in any round during this span. It's the lowest the Sun Devils have scored on a par-70, Pac-12 Championship course since the first round of the 1999 championship (347).

Lowest Team Scores in a Round on Par-70 Courses in Pac-12 Championship (Since 1990):

2023: 331, Arizona State first round, Stanford GC, CA 
2023: 336, Colorado, second round, Stanford GC, CA 
2013: 338, California, first round, Los Angeles Country Club, LA
2015: 340, Stanford, final round, Palouse Ridge, WA
2017: 342, Stanford, third round, Boulder Country Club, CO
2011: 345, Oregon, final round, Stanford GC, CA
1999: 347, Arizona State, first round, 1999: Broadmoor GC, WA

Jose-Luis Ballester and Preston Summerhays were tied for third place with six-under 64's after the first 18 holes. 

Both Ballester and Summerhays started hot, birding hole No. 10 after starting on the back-nine. Summerhays finished the front-nine with a team-best -4 after an eagle on hole No. 16. 

?? for ??? on 1??6??

?? https://t.co/fk3QXyQCS7#ForksUp /// #Pac12Golf pic.twitter.com/P85ktvJhsc

— Sun Devil Men's Golf (@sundevilmgolf) April 28, 2023

Luke Potter finished the first-nine holes strong with birdies on holes 15, 16, and 17 before finishing the round with a three-under 67.

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Our tractor is rolling. Three straight birdies for Luke Potter ??

?? https://t.co/FeQyr6UCsK#ForksUp /// #Pac12Golf pic.twitter.com/69YrE8rQdU

— Sun Devil Men's Golf (@sundevilmgolf) April 28, 2023
Michael Mjaaseth became the second Sun Devil with three consecutive birdies in the first round on holes five, six and seven before finishing the round with a two-under 68. 

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Grab a hose. Three straight birdies on 5, 6 and 7. Ice man got hot ????

?? https://t.co/fk3QXyQCS7 #ForksUp /// #Pac12Golf pic.twitter.com/MBSiRjr2Xp

— Sun Devil Men's Golf (@sundevilmgolf) April 28, 2023
The Sun Devils 19-under first-round total is the fifth time the team has started out a tournament with a team score of 10-under or better this season.

  • 20-under, Thunderbird Collegiate (April 14, 2023)/Papago Golf Club 

  • 19-under Pac-12 Championship (April 28, 2023)/Stanford Golf Club

  • 14-under, NIT (Mar. 17, 2023)/Omni Tucson National 

  • 13-under, Maui Jim Intercollegiate (Sept. 9, 2022)/Mirabel Golf Club

  • 13-under, Southwestern Invitational (Jan. 30, 2023)/North Ranch Country Club

SECOND ROUND
ASU concluded the second round at five-under (65-67-69-71-73=345/-5), maintaining a five-stroke lead heading into the final two rounds. 

After two bogeys on the first four holes, Summerhays bounced back with five birdies and an eagle in a stretch of eight holes. His eagle was the second consecutive round with an eagle on the No. 16. He parred the final five holes to give him a five-under 65.

Ballester bogeyed three of the first five holes but bounced back with three birdies and remained steady throughout, finishing with a one-over 71. Potter finished strong with three straight birdies to end the round and carding a three-under 67. Mjaaseth recorded the only eagle on hole No. 18 in two rounds thus far and finished the second round with a one-under 69.

RICH IN HISTORY
Arizona State has won 12 conference titles in its 43 chances, including a conference-record six straight from 1995-2000. In addition to the six straight Pac-10 titles, ASU's other six Pac-10 titles were in 1979 (its first year in the league), 1981, 1989, 1990, 1993 and 2008. ASU tied for the league title in 2005 with Washington but lost on a tiebreaker formula, and the league decided to go to a playoff format after that season.

UP NEXT
The third round of the Pac-12 Men's Golf Championships starts tomorrow, with the first tee time at 11:00 a.m. MST. Arizona State begins at 11:12 a.m. MST. Co-leader Preston Summerhays will tee off at 12:12 p.m. MST.