Colorado State University Athletics
Men's golf preview: ASU Thunderbird Invitational
4/9/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
April 9, 2008
Complete Release in PDF Format 
Line of play: ASU Thunderbird Invitational
Colorado State will tee off at the ASU Thunderbrid Invitational on Friday in Tempe, Ariz.
Arizona State University will host the tournament at the ASU Karsten Golf Course, a 7,057-yard, par-71 course. The 54-hole tournament will begin with Round 1 on Friday followed by Round 2 on Saturday and Round 3 on Sunday. Teams will tee off at 8:30 a.m. MDT Friday and Saturday and 8 a.m. MDT on Sunday.
In addition to CSU and ASU, 13 other teams will play in the tournament: Arizona, Baylor, California, Connecticut, Cal State Northridge, Denver, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pacific, San Diego State, Texas A&M and UC Irvine.
Riley Arp, Zen Brown, Bryce Hanstad, Sean McNamara and Dustin Morris will compete for the Rams.
At the 2007 tournament, Oregon took home the team title and Charlie Beljan of New Mexico clinched individual honors.
Live scoring of this year's tournament will be available at www.golfstat.com.
Through the green: Last regular-season tournament
The ASU Thunderbird Invitational marks the last regular tournament of the 2007-08 season. Some season highlights:
• To this point, the Rams have achieved nine Top 20 and eight Top 10 finishes. Two of those finishes were a first place spot, at the Del Walker Intercollegiate and Agua-Caliente Collegiate. Bryce Hanstad leads the Rams in finishes, posting six Top 20s and five Top 10s.
• Dustin Morris is close behind with five Top 20 and two Top 10 finishes. Morris is also the only Ram to earn medalist honors this season with a win at the Agua-Caliente Collegiate in November and was named Mountain West Conference Men's Golfer of the Month for November as well.
• Sean McNamara earned his collegiate season and all-time low round, as well as his low tournament total and highest tournament finish, at the Agua-Caliente Collegiate. He achieved a low round of 65, low tournament total of 197, and finished in sixth place.
Sweet spot: Rankings
The Rams have three players on the Mountain West Conference Top 20 leader board based on stroke average. Bryce Hanstad (72.26) is ranked in eighth, Dustin Morris (72.63) in 12th and Zen Brown (73.00) holds 14th.
Colorado State is ranked on the Golfweek Top 100 team leader board in 97th place.
Finishing hole: Ron Moore Invitational
After three rounds of play at the Ron Moore Invitational, the Colorado State men's golf team finished eighth.
The team carded rounds of 285, 279 and 295 for a three-round total of 859 and ousted eight teams in the process: Northern Iowa, Iowa State, New Mexico State, Kansas, Southern Utah, Nebraska, Air Force and Hawaii. The finish is the Rams' ninth Top 20 finish and eighth Top 10 finish of the season.
Dustin Morris led the Rams throughout the tournament and shot a final-round 72, even par, to finish in a tie for 14th.
Zen Brown and Bryce Hanstad proved to be each other's toughest competitor both finishing in a tie for 28th. Brown shot a final-round 76 to finish with a three-round total 216, even par. Hanstad shot a final-round of 74, 2-over-par, to secure the tie.
Riley Arp finished in a tie for 34th to round out the scoring for the Rams, while Sean McNamara tied for 61st.
Kansas State took home the team title and Troy Merritt of Boise State clinched individual honors for the second year in a row.
Tournament recaps
Wolf Pack Classic
Colorado State tied for sixth at the Wolf Pack Classic. Bryce Hanstad led the Rams and acheieved a tie for 13th with a final total of 215. Zen Brown missed a Top 20 finish by just one shot and finished in a tie for 22nd with a final score of 218. The University of Arizona took the team title.
Fighting Irish Gridiron Classic
Colorado State placed seventh at the Fighting Irish Gridiron Classic, led by Bryce Hanstad, who carded a 213 to finish tied for sixth. Zen Brown joined Hanstad in the Top 20 with a final score of 218 and a tie for 18th place. Sean McNamara and Praneeth Perera made their season debuts as individual players in the tournament. Michigan State University earned the team title, shooting a 7-over-par 847.
2007 Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational
Colorado State placed eighth at the 2007 Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational, led by Bryce Hanstad, who carded a 214 to finish tied for 10th. Iowa State University and Wichita State University tied for the team title, shooting a 12-under-par 852.
Club Glove Intercollegiate
Colorado State achieved a fourth place performance at the Club Glove Intercollegiate. In the process, the Rams toppled three Top 50 ranked schools including Lamar, Memphis and LSU. The Rams carded rounds of 311, 318, and 308 for a three-round total of 937 and were led by Dustin Morris who finished in a tie for third. Pepperdine took the team title and Joel Sjoholm of Georgia State University clinched individual honors.
Del Walker Intercollegiate
Colorado State captured the Del Walker Intercollegiate team title. The Rams posted a team total 11-under-par 841 (276-284-281) to pick up the victory by one stroke over Pacific. Colorado State, as a team, recorded three birdies on the final hole to clinch the victory. With the first-place finish, the Rams ousted five Golfweek Top 100 teams playing in the tournament - Arizona, UC Irvine, Saint Mary's, UC Santa Barbara and Pacific.
Agua-Caliente Collegiate Invite
Colorado State closed the fall season with a team victory at the Agua-Caliente Air Force Invitational. The Rams shot a final-round of 265 to capture the team title with a three-round total of 787 and achieved one of the lowest team scores in NCAA history. Sophomore Dustin Morris took home the individual title. Bryce Hanstad tied for third and Sean McNamara finished in sixth. Riley Arp finished in a tie for 13th and Zen Brown tied for 21st.
GADO North Texas Classic
Colorado State finished in sixth place at the GADO North Texas Classic, carding rounds of 295, 288 and 295 for a three-round total of 878. Bryce Hanstad led the Rams throughout the competition and finished in a tie for 10th place, 72-70-73 -- 215. Dustin Morris finished in the Top 20 with a tie for 18th, 4-over-par. Zen Brown finished in a tie for 35th while Riley Arp finished 41st and Sean McNamara tied for 59th. Louisiana-Lafayette took home the team title and Kyle Nicolson of CSU-Northridge clinched individual honors.
2008 Callaway Golf Invitational
Colorado State wrapped up play at the 2008 Callaway Golf Invitational with a 13th-place finish, ousting San Jose State and Purdue. Junior Zen Brown led the team and carded a final round of 70 (72-75-70 -- 217) to earn a tie for eighth place. McNamara also improved his game carding a final round of 73 (77-76-73 -- 226) and finished in a tie for 36th. Hanstad tied for 64th, Morris tied for 66th and Perera finished in 77th place. Wichita State took the team title and Dustin Garza (Wichita State) earned medalist honors.
