May 9, 2000
FRESNO STATE TO HOST NCAA WEST REGIONAL: The Arizona State men's golf team travels to Madera, Calif., to compete in the 2000 NCAA West Regional on May 18-20. The tournament, hosted by Fresno State, takes place at The Riverbend Golf Course (par-72, 6,966 yards). The 27 teams (and six individuals) will play 18 holes each day with at least the top nine teams advancing to the national championships in Opelika, Ala., May 31-June 3. ASU's lineup will be junior All-American, three-time Pac-10 champion and 1998 NCAA West Regional champion Paul Casey, sophomore Matt Jones, junior All-American and defending NCAA West Regional champion Jeff Quinney, senior Jonas Runnquist and junior Jin Park. Dating to last year, Casey is 81-under-par in his past 42 rounds and is coming off a 23-under 265 at the Pac-10 Championships and a 9-under 207 (69-69-69) at the ASU Thunderbird/SAVANE Invitational on April 15-16. Casey, the Pac-10 Player of the Year, earned medalist honors in both events, as he now has six career wins, matching him with Charlie Gibson (1972-75) for third on the Arizona State career list. Billy Mayfair (1985-88) is second on the list with eight, while Phil Mickelson (1989-92) leads the list with 16. Both Casey and Quinney could become the first players to win two West Regionals, as 11 different players have won the event since the NCAA started regional play in 1989.
HEADING INTO REGIONALS: ASU has now won four of its past five tournaments heading into the NCAA West Regional, where it is the defending team champion and junior Jeff Quinney is the defending individual champion. In the 11-year history of regional play, ASU has finished lower than second just once (third in 1990) and has won or shared the West Region title four times (2000, 1998, 1995 and 1991). Results will be posted on the Fresno State website at gobulldogs.com.
BACK-TO-BACK: The Pac-10 victory gave Casey back-to-back titles for the second time in his career, as he won the ASU Thunderbird/SAVANE on April 15-16. Casey also won back-to-back tournaments in his freshman year (1997-98) when he won the Pac-10 championship and the NCAA West Regional, becoming the first Sun Devil to win back-to-back tournaments since Phil Mickelson did it in 1991-92. The last time a Sun Devil won three straight tournaments (no ties) was in 1990-91, when Mickelson won outright championships at the Golf Digest Invitational, the Morris Williams Invitational and the ASU/Thunderbird Invitational.
STROKE AVERAGE RECORD WITHIN REACH: Phil Mickelson holds the ASU stroke average record of 69.95 back in 1991-92. Heading into NCAA West Regional action, Casey has a 69.40 stroke average through 25 rounds. He will play seven more rounds on the year (three at West Regionals and four at the NCAA Championships). If he averages 71.85 in his final seven rounds he will break Mickelson's ASU record.
PAC-10 REVIEW: Paul Casey shot a 67 in the final round of the 41st annual Pac-10 Men's Golf Championship to break Tiger Woods conference par-72 mark and win his third straight Pac-10 title at The ASU Karsten Golf Course (par-72, 7027 yards) on April 24-26. Casey also led Arizona State to its sixth straight league title, as the Sun Devils shot 56-under 1,384 (339-351-342-352) to also set Pac-10 records for low score and best score under par. Casey finished at 23-under 265 (66-65-67-67) and broke Woods' Pac-10 par-72 record of 18-under 270 (61-65-73-71) set in the 1996 Championships at Big Canyon Country Club in Newport Beach, Calif. Casey last year shot a 15-under 265 at the Broadmoor Golf Club in Seattle on the par-70 course, including a NCAA record 60 in the final round. No player had won three straight Pac-10 titles, although Sherman Finger of USC won three straight Pac-8 crowns from 1963-65. ASU won the title by 37 strokes over Oregon State, as Sun Devil senior Jonas Runnquist also tied for fifth with a 9-under 279 (66-69-71-73). ASU has now won 11 Pac-10 titles since joining the league in fall of 1978. ASU broke its own records with its 56-under 1,384. ASU set the low team-score record in Seattle last year with a 3-over-par 1,403 at the par-70 Broadmoor Golf Club. The previous par record was 22-under 1,418 by ASU in 1990.
DEVIL DATA: ASU's 12 straight NCAA top-10 finishes is the nation's best current mark...ASU also is the only team to finish in the top five at the NCAAs in each of the past five years...ASU has won the Pac-10 title the past six years (a conference record) and in seven of the past eight years...ASU won national championships in 1990 and 1996...ASU is led by eighth-year head coach Randy Lein, the 1996 National Coach of the Year and a seven-time winner of Pac-10 Coach of the Year (four times at ASU and twice at USC).
| TOURNAMENT | DATE (SITE) | RESULT/NOTES |
| NCAA Ping Preview | 9/19-21 (Opelika, Ala.) | ASU 3rd/Matt Jones 4th |
| Jerry Pate National | 10/18-19 (Birmingham, Ala.) | ASU 6th/Paul Casey T-2nd |
| Golf World Invitational | 11/5-7 (Hilton Head, S.C.) | ASU 5th/Jin Park T-7th |
| Ping/Arizona Intercoll. | 1/30-2/1 (Tucson, Ariz.) | ASU 9th/Matt Jones T-22nd |
| Taylor Made Intercoll. | 2/17-19 (Waikoloa, Hawaii) | ASU 2nd/Paul Casey 3rd |
| USC/Southwestern Classic | 2/28-29 (Los Angeles, Calif.) | ASU 1st/Quinney & Casey T-3rd |
| Las Vegas Intercollegiate | 3/10-12 (Las Vegas, Nev.) | ASU 1st/Paul Casey T-3rd |
| U.S. Collegiate Champ. | 4/7-9 (Los Cabos, Mexico) | ASU 10th/Matt Jones T-24th |
| ASU Thunderbird/SAVANE Inv. | 4/15-16 (Tempe, Ariz.) | ASU 1st/Casey 1st |
| Pac-10 Championships | 4/24-26 (Tempe, Ariz.) | ASU 1st/Casey 1st |
| NCAA West Regionals | 5/18-20 (Fresno, Calif.) | ASU & Quinney def. champs |
| NCAA Championships | 5/31-6/3 (Opelika, Ala.) | ASU champs in '90 and '96 |
RANDY LEIN: Randy Lein has coached 53 tournament victories in 18 seasons, tutored 38 All-Americans and added the top accolade in collegiate golf in 1995-96 - the NCAA title - to his collection of honors as the Sun Devils won the title in Chattanooga, Tenn., with a three-stroke victory over UNLV at the Honors Course. In his eighth season as ASU's coach, Lein has guided ASU to 30 tournament victories (including a school record six in 1995-96), seven Pac-10 titles, three NCAA West Regional wins and seven top-10 finishes at the NCAAs including the 1996 title. In addition, Lein has tutored NCAA medalist Todd Demsey and nine All-Americans (18 occasions): Todd Demsey (3), Chris Hanell (3), Cade Stone, Chris Stutts, Joey Snyder (2), Scott Johnson (2), Darren Angel (2), Jeff Quinney (2) and Paul Casey (2). He has won Pac-10 Coach-of-the-Year five times (1993, 1995, 1996, 1999 and 2000) while at ASU and twice at USC (1980 and 1986). Lein (pronounced "Line") is a 1975 graduate of CS Northridge.
ON THE CHARTS: Paul Casey has already captured six tournament championships in his 32-tournament career. Casey won the 2000 ASU Thunderbird/SAVANE Invitational, the 1998 NCAA West Regional, the 1998, 1999 and 2000 Pac-10 Championships and the 1998 USC/Cleveland Golf Southwestern Classic. A look at Casey on the ASU career wins list:
| Rk. | Name (Years) | Wins |
| 1. | Phil Mickelson (1989-92) | 16 |
| 2. | Billy Mayfair (1985-88) | 8 |
| 3t. | Paul Casey (1997-present) | 6 |
| 3t. | Charlie Gibson (1972-75) | 6 |
| 5. | Todd Demsey (1992-95) | 5 |
| 6t. | Howard Twitty (1970-72) | 4 |
| 6t | Scott Watkins (1978-79) | 4 |
| 6t | Dan Croonquist (1976-79) | 4 |
| 9. | Jim Carter (1981-84) | 3 |
| Jeff Quinney (1997-present) | 2 |
JUNIOR ALL-AMERICAN PAUL CASEY: A two-time second-team All-American and three-time Pac-10 champion...1999 English Amateur Champion...2000 Pac-10 Golfer of the Year...set Pac-10 record with 23-under 265 (66-65-67-67) at 2000 Pac-10 Championship...won the 2000 ASU Thunderbird/SAVANE Invitational with a 9-under 207 (69-69-69)...Golf World Player of the Week for May 2...has 15 rounds in the 60s this year (out of 25)...dating to last year, Casey is 81-under in his past 42 rounds...has at least a third-place finish in five of his past six tournaments...is 55-under-par in 25 rounds this year...shot an NCAA record 60 on the final day of the 1999 Pac-10 Championships (April 28)...also medalist at 1998 and 1999 Pac-10 Championships, 1998 Cleveland Golf Southwestern Invitational and 1998 NCAA West Regional.
| Year | App | Top 10 | Rds. | Avg. | Low |
| 1999-00 | 8 | 6 | 25 | 69.40 | 65 |
| 1998-99 | 12 | 7 | 37 | 72.16 | 60 |
| 1997-98 | 12 | 5 | 37 | 72.30 | 65 |
| Career | 32 | 18 | 99 | 71.52 | 60 |
Low Round: 60 at the 1999 Pac-10 Championships, held in Seattle, in the fourth and final round.
SOPHOMORE MATT JONES: Has been in the top 10 in three of his past five tournaments...tied for seventh at 2000 Pac-10 Championships with 8-under 280 (72-71-66-71)...five of his past 13 rounds have been in the 60s...first-team All-Pac-10 in 2000...improved his score each day at the 1999 NCAA Championships (79-78-76-73)...tied for 10th this past summer at Porter Cup but equaled tournament record with 62 in opening round...has 10 rounds in the 60s in brief career.
| Year | App | Top 10 | Rds. | Avg. | Low |
| 1999-00 | 10 | 4 | 31 | 71.58 | 66 |
| 1998-99 | 8 | 2 | 26 | 73.38 | 68 |
| Career | 18 | 6 | 57 | 72.40 | 66 |
Low Round: 66 at the 2000 Pac-10 Championships, held in Tempe, in the third round.
JUNIOR ALL-AMERICAN JEFF QUINNEY: Has four top-10 finishes this year...tied for eighth at the 2000 ASU Thunderbird/SAVANE Invitational with a 4-under 212 (68-73-71)...tied for third at USC Southwestern Classic with a 2-under 214 (74-70-70)...first-team All-Pac-10 in 2000 and 1999...medalist at 1999 West Regional and ASU Thunder/SAVANE Invitational...best round this year was a 66 in the first round of the Jerry Pate Intercollegiate.
| Year | App | Top 10 | Rds. | Avg. | Low |
| 1999-00 | 11 | 4 | 34 | 72.41 | 66 |
| 1998-99 | 13 | 5 | 40 | 72.50 | 62 |
| 1997-98 | 11 | 3 | 35 | 72.57 | 68 |
| Career | 35 | 12 | 109 | 72.50 | 62 |
Low Round: 62 at the 1999 ASU Thunderbird/SAVANE Invitational, held in Tempe, in the third and final round.
JUNIOR JIN PARK: Had a 9-under-par 207 (71-68-68) at the Golf World Invitational and tied for seventh...tied for 15th at Pac-10 Championships with a 4-under 284 (65-77-70-72)...has three top-10 finishes in his career...best career finish was a tie for fourth at 1998 Pac-10 Championships with a 2-under 286 (72-72-66-76).
| Year | App | Top 10 | Rds. | Avg. | Low |
| 1999-00 | 10 | 1 | 31 | 73.74 | 65 |
| 1998-99 | 12 | 1 | 36 | 73.97 | 66 |
| 1997-98 | 11 | 1 | 34 | 73.85 | 66 |
| Career | 33 | 3 | 101 | 73.75 | 65 |
Low Round: 65 at the 2000 Pac-10 Championships, held in Tempe., in the first round.
SENIOR JONAS RUNNQUIST: Tied for fifth at 2000 Pac-10 Championships with a 9-under 279 (66-69-71-73)...has three top-10 finishes this year...second-team All-Pac-10 in 2000...tied for fourth at ASU Thunderbird/SAVANE Invitational with a 5-under 211 (69-72-20)...shot a 66 at the Nelson Invitational in third round on Oct. 31...is 15-under in his past eight rounds...tied for fourth at the Nelson.
| Year | App | Top 10 | Rds. | Avg. | Low |
| 1999-00 | 9 | 3 | 28 | 72.71 | 66 |
| 1998-99 | 10 | 1 | 31 | 75.06 | 67 |
| 1997-98 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 75.00 | 70 |
| 1996-97 | 6 | 0 | 18 | 77.06 | 72 |
| Career | 27 | 4 | 83 | 74.70 | 66 |
Low Round: 66, twice, at the 2000 Pac-10 Championships, held in Tempe, in the first round, and at the 1999 Nelson Invitational, held at Stanford, in the third and final round.
NCAAs: Seven schools have made at least 11 straight trips to the NCAA Championships. The schools and the consecutive years they have contended are: Oklahoma State (53), Clemson (18), Florida (17), Arizona State (16), Arizona (11), UNLV (11), North Carolina (11).
THE AVERAGE FINISH: The Sun Devils averaged a 4.1 finish at the NCAA Championships in the 1990s, the best mark in the nation. Only Oklahoma State (4.5) averaged higher than an eighth-place finish in the past decade.
CUT ABOVE: Since the NCAA instituted the 15-team "cut" at the NCAA Championships in 1992, only three schools have made the cut each of the eight years: Arizona State, Oklahoma State and Florida.
SUN DEVILS AS PAC-10 CHAMPS: A list of Sun Devils who have won Pac-10 individual titles (year and score noted): Scott Watkins and Dan Croonquist in 1979 (277), Jim Bertoncino in 1980 (280), Dan Forsman and Tony Grimes in 1981 (283), Phil Mickelson in 1990 (278), Scott Johnson in 1997 (278), and Paul Casey in 1998 (283), 1999 (265) and 2000 (265).
MAKING HISTORY: Arizona State's Paul Casey has won three straight Pac-10 crowns in his first three seasons. A look at others who have won at least three consecutive conference crowns, and note that it has only been done twice since 1985, by Casey and PGA Tour member Justin Leonard:
| Player | School/Conference | Years (Titles) |
| Justin Leonard | Texas/SWC | 1991-94 (4)* |
| Paul Casey | Arizona St./Pac-10 | 1998-2000 (3) |
| Pat Fogarty | St. John's/BIG EAST | 1982-84 (3) |
| Tim Graham | McNeese St./Southland | 1977-79 (3) |
| Lindy Miller | Oklahoma St./Big 8 | 1976-78 (3) |
| Ken Ezell | Furman/Southern | 1975-77 (3) |
| John Davis | La.-Lafayette/Southland | 1974-76 (3)* |
| B.R. McLendon | LSU/SEC | 1965-67 (3) |
| Sherman Finger | USC/Pac-8 | 1964-66 (3) |
| John Konsek | Ohio St./Big 10 | 1958-60 (3) |
| Fred Wampler | Ohio St./Big 10 | 1948-50 (3) |
| Ed White | Texas/SWC | 1933-35 (3) |
*Leonard shared 1992 title with Jason Hill of Texas Tech.
*Davis shared 1975 title with Scott Morgan of La.Tech.
NCAA West Regional Champions
| Year | Champ | ASU Finish | Individual Champion |
| 1989 | Arizona | 2nd | Robert Gamez (Arizona) |
| 1990 | UNLV | 3rd* | Hub Goyen (UNLV) |
| 1991 | ASU | T-1st | *Warren Schutte (UNLV) |
| Arizona | |||
| 1992 | Arizona* | 2nd | Harry Rudolph (Arizona) |
| 1993 | Arizona | 2nd | Manny Zerman (Arizona) |
| 1994 | UNLV | 2nd | Edward Fryatt (UNLV) |
| 1995 | ASU | 1st | Mike Sauer (New Mexico) |
| 1996 | Stanford | 2nd* | *Tiger Woods (Stanford) |
| 1997 | UNLV | 2nd | Aaron Oberholser (San Jose St.) |
| 1998 | ASU/UNM | 1st | Paul Casey (ASU) |
| 1999 | ASU | 1st | Jeff Quinney (ASU) |
*Eventual NCAA Champion
SUN DEVILS AS PAC-10 PLAYER OF THE YEAR: A list of Sun Devils who have won Pac-10 Player of the Year award: Scott Watkins (1979 co-player of the year), Dan Forsman (1981 co-player of the year), Billy Mayfair (1987), Phil Mickelson (1990, 1991 and 1992), Todd Demsey (1994) and Paul Casey (2000).