This post was updated May 21 at 12:39 p.m.
For the first time in seven years, the Bruins have a shot at the national championship.
No. 3 seed UCLA men’s golf placed third at the Auburn Regional in Auburn, Alabama, with a 6-over 870 to secure the team a spot in the national championship next week. The May 12 to May 14 event at the Auburn University Club marked the Bruins’ best regional performance since 2013.
“Any time you can qualify to the national championship is a big deal,” said coach Armen Kirakossian. “It’s not an easy feat to do it, but we managed to get through and couldn’t be more excited to go and compete.”
Kirakossian, who was named the Big Ten Coach of the Year on May 1, said the regional was the most high-pressure event of the season, given that the team’s season was on the line.
Omar Morales found diamonds under that pressure. The senior, an All-Big Ten First Team honoree, finished second individually with an 8-under 208 in a field crowded with six top-25 golfers.
Morales said he’s historically performed well under high-stakes conditions.
“Every shot matters,” Morales said. “If you don’t make it, then the season’s over, and you miss the biggest tournament of the year.”
Morales was joined on the leaderboard by junior Kyle An and sophomore Luke Powell, who notched a 5-over 221 and a 13-over 229, respectively. Freshman Baylor Larrabee and senior Pablo Ereño – the Big Ten Men’s Golfer of the Year – tied at 35th, both carding 7-over 223s.
The regional marked the Bruins’ fifth time this year on the East Coast, including sojourns in Florida, Maryland and Georgia.
“There’s just some things you can’t prepare for, other than if you experience them and go through it,” Kirakossian said. “We had a familiarity that helped us adjust quicker in the regional than maybe we would have if we didn’t have those experiences. So 100%, absolutely made an impact.”
For its season finale, however, UCLA will be much closer to home. The national championship takes place in Carlsbad, California, at the Omni La Costa Resort & Spa.
“Being a two-and-a-half hour drive south of campus, it’s definitely nice,” Kirakossian said. “How big of an advantage is it? I don’t know. I do know that we’ll probably feel comfortable.”
Kirakossian added that while the conditions may be similar to other courses the Bruins have played on, the championship locale has been off-limits for Division I teams this season because of NCAA regulations set in place to level the field.
To find success in Carlsbad from May 23 to May 28, the Bruins will have to play exemplary golf for six days. One of the 29 teams in the way of victory is No. 1 Auburn, last year’s champion and the victors at its hometown regional, where it blew out the rest of the field with the best score to par across all six regionals – a 32-under 832.
Kirakossian said while the Bruins’ high-volume practice program may have prepared them for the lengthy event, there is no real way to simulate the environment at nationals.
“Just take it one day at a time and make sure I’m physically prepared to play the event before I arrive,” Morales said. “I’m not necessarily going to treat it any different to any other event.”
The championship will feature four rounds of stroke play with two cuts, while the final two days will bring match play, presenting a potentially more volatile format.
“In the match play, anything can really happen,” Kirakossian said. “I’m very excited for our opportunity and our chance, and if we play how I know we can play, we will be in very good position to make a good run at this.”
Comments are closed.