The men of ASU golf traveled to Salt Lake City, Utah this weekend to wrap up their regular season at the Pac-12 Championship. The three-day four round tournament was played on the 7,209 yard par-71 course known simply as The Country Club.
Round 1
The Sun Devil team started slow out of the gates; through the first six holes, the team recorded only one birdie while registering 10 bogeys. That early deficit was gradually erased after an eagle by senior Jon Rahm on the 8th hole.
With birdies by Rahm's teammates, seniors Max Rottluff and Alberto Sanchez and junior Jared du Toit, the ASU team carried momentum to the back nine looking to make up for their early struggles.
Approaching the 18th hole, the Sun Devil squad sat at nine-over. After an incredible run in which all six ASU players recorded a birdie on the 18th hole, the Sun Devils propelled themselves up the leaderboard to 5th place with a round one team score of four over.
The best Sun Devil score belonged to du Toit, who scored a 69 in the first round. Rahm was one stroke behind his teammate with a score of 70 (-1).
Round 2
The second round was a nearly flawless one for Rahm. After shooting a two-under on the front nine, Rahm followed it up with six birdies (with one bogey and a double bogey) to post a 66 on round two. This tied for the lowest score of the day.
In addition to Rahm's performance, it was a day of all-around improvement for the team. Rottluff and sophomore Tobias Eden played their round in even par while du Toit contributed a one-under round to help the team move from 5th place into 4th.
Round 3
The third round belonged to — you guessed it — Jon Rahm. He was the only Sun Devil player to record an under-par round.
He hit six birdies and a trio of bogeys for a third round total of 68.
After three rounds the Sun Devils sat in a tie for fourth with No. 24 University of Washington at ten-over. Rahm led ASU with nine-under, good for second place overall, and du Toit was the next-best Sun Devil with a score of two-under, tied for eighth overall.
Round 4
Rahm entered the final day six strokes back of the lead set by Cal-Berkeley sophomore KK Limbhasut.
The Sun Devil made up ground quickly. He made four birdies in his first eight holes.
Rahm scuffled a bit shortly after his birdie run with a bogey on the par-4 ninth and followed that with a double bogey on the par-4 tenth hole. However, he bounced back with a birdie on the 14th and the 18th.
He posted a 72-hole score of 272 (-12) and finished his round while Limbhasut still had five holes to play. All Rahm could do was wait.
With bogeys on holes 9, 10, 14 and 15, Limbhasut was in a free fall. After a triple bogey on the par-4 16th hole, Rahm sat alone atop the leaderboard with his closest competitor four strokes back.
With the victory, Rahm becomes the seventh Sun Devil to hold the title. This was his tenth collegiate win overall, joining just Phil Mickelson as the only Sun Devils to record double-digit victories.
The ASU team finished with a team score of +19, good enough to capture a top-three finish in the tournament.
"I have a really strong belief in my abilities and every part of my game and that is what makes me so consistent," Rahm said in an interview before the tournament. "I never lose faith in what I do and what I can pull off in terms of shots."
He's expected to compete in the NCAA Regionals and the NCAA Championships in May to end his collegiate career. He already has plans for the next step of his life.
"In this summer, I'm going to try to use the six invites I have left to use on the PGA Tour," he said. "Hopefully I get what I want and with that start my PGA Tour career."
Reach the reporter at Braxton.Fox@asu.edu or follow @braxton_fox_II on Twitter.
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