Posts tagged David Oraee
BUFF GOLFERS SLIP INTO SEVENTH AT PAC-12 CHAMPIONSHIPS
May 1st
LOS ANGELES — The University of Colorado men’s golf team slipped a notch from a tie for sixth into one for seventh after a high-scoring third round saw team scores escalate as the Pac-12 Conference Championships head into the final day of competition Wednesday.
No. 1 California remained in the lead but saw it shrink from nine strokes down to two. The Bears own a 1,056 team score, 6-over par, which is just ahead of No. 3 and host UCLA (1,058), which shot one of the two low rounds for the day, a 4-over 354. No. 4 Washington held its third place position, but is well back of the leaders at 1,078; Arizona State used the other low round in the field to zoom into fourth (1,084), with No. 7 Stanford rounding out the top five (1,092).
The Buffaloes, ranked No. 60, didn’t have a great day, but didn’t shoot themselves out of a first division finish, either. Colorado turned in a 30-over par 380 score for a 1,110 overall total, which has it tied with No. 11 Southern California and No. 51 Oregon State.
All 12 schools shot over par – to the tune of a total of 235 strokes. Only three players in the field turned in under par rounds Tuesday, with just four others matching par as the average score in the 72-man field jumped from 73.29 in the first round to 74.69 in the third.
The Buffs collectively recorded just eight birdies Tuesday, with 58 pars, 39 bogeys, four doubles and a quadruple.
“The hole locations were much more difficult,” head coach Roy Edwards said. “It was really tough out there, really hard. This is a major championship test, and in fields like this on a course like this, it’s hard to play 72 holes straight without having some struggles. And everyone went through it, this is one of USC’s home courses and they’re dead even with us through three rounds. It’s just a big time challenge out there, but the truth is that it is very fair. The greens are very firm and very, very fast. This is a top 10 golf course in the world since they restored it three years ago.”
“I thought we did okay under the circumstances, and of course we wanted to play better,” Edwards added. “But we had way too many three-putts, my guess is somewhere around 20, 25. We were in pretty good spots for the most part, we only had a few bad approach shots, so for the most part things were in our control putting-wise. Much of the damage was early.”
CU’s six players were collectively 15-over par through just five holes, and also were 10-over the last three.
Freshman Philip Juel-Berg continued to pace the Buffaloes, though he shot a 7-over 77 in the third round; his 7-over 217 is tied for 20th on the 7,236-yard, par-70 Los Angeles Country Club’s North Course design. He had 11 pars and seven bogeys on his day, with his 39 pars tied for the most in the field and his 4.07 average on the par-4 holes is sixth best. Of the 16 freshmen in the field (including three redshirts), Juel-Berg is fifth among them heading into the last 18 holes.
Junior Johnny Hayes shot CU’s best round of the day, a 4-over 74, which gave him a 10-over 220 total that has him tied for 27th. He had two birdies, 10 pars and six bogeys for his round; he turned at 5-over but was one of the few players in the field to play either nine under par when he had both of his birds and just one bogey on the front side.
Senior Derek Fribbs turned in a 6-over 76 for a 221 score (11-over), as he had two birdies and eight pars against eight bogeys Wednesday. He was even though 10 holes but bogeyed six of the last eight holes coming into the clubhouse.
Fribbs and Juel-Berg have yet to have a score worse than a bogey.
Sophomore David Oraee fashioned a 5-over 75, which has him in as 12-over 222 for 54 holes; he had a birdie and 11 pars against six bogeys for his effort on the day. Like many of his teammates, he was over par early, in his case, 4-over seven holes in, but settled down and played the last 11 at just 1-over.
Redshirt freshman Drew Trujillo shot an 8-over 78 for a 233 score (23-over), as he had 10 pars against six bogeys and a double for the third round. Tied for 67th in the field, he opened with a double on No. 10 and then bogeyed the next three holes to stand 5-over just four holes in, but gathered himself to reel off eight straight pars.
Senior Jason Burstyn, CU’s No. 1 player and leader in stroke average (72.15), continued to struggle, though was playing a little better than he did Monday until he was derailed on his final hole of the day, the par-3 No. 9 where he scored a quadruple bogey after having some trouble in the bunker. He finished with a 9-over 79 for a 234 total (plus-24), which has him in 69th place entering the final round. He started the round well with a birdie, and had scored his third of the day right before the disaster on No. 9. Burstyn came into the meet with just one triple bogey in 34 rounds (and just three in 68 rounds dating to last year), but has had to endure a triple and a quad here this week.
Cal’s Max Homa is still riding his first round course record 61 and extended his individual lead to five strokes, as he shot a 71 in the third round for an 8-under 202. UCLA freshman Jonathan Garrick also shot a 71 for a 3-under 207 total, with four others six strokes back at 2-under 208.
The fourth and final round is set for Wednesday, with play beginning at 9 a.m. MDT off both the No. 1 and 10 tees; Colorado will be paired with USC and Oregon State and will begin play off the back nine on Wednesday in the first six groups to start the day.
“We’re hoping this was our ‘struggle’ round of the week and that we will finish strong and rebound Wednesday,” Edwards said.
NOTES: Through 54 holes, just six players are under par and two others at even … After six eagles were recorded on Monday, just one went into the books Tuesday … Fribbs (-4) and Hayes (-3) are two of just 18 players in the field to be more than 2-under par on the three par-5 holes … The Pac-12 Network will air highlights of the championship on Saturday, May 11, at Noon MDT.
LOS ANGELES — The University of Colorado men’s golf team slipped a notch from a tie for sixth into one for seventh after a high-scoring third round saw team scores escalate as the Pac-12 Conference Championships head into the final day of competition Wednesday.
No. 1 California remained in the lead but saw it shrink from nine strokes down to two. The Bears own a 1,056 team score, 6-over par, which is just ahead of No. 3 and host UCLA (1,058), which shot one of the two low rounds for the day, a 4-over 354. No. 4 Washington held its third place position, but is well back of the leaders at 1,078; Arizona State used the other low round in the field to zoom into fourth (1,084), with No. 7 Stanford rounding out the top five (1,092).
The Buffaloes, ranked No. 60, didn’t have a great day, but didn’t shoot themselves out of a first division finish, either. Colorado turned in a 30-over par 380 score for a 1,110 overall total, which has it tied with No. 11 Southern California and No. 51 Oregon State.
All 12 schools shot over par – to the tune of a total of 235 strokes. Only three players in the field turned in under par rounds Tuesday, with just four others matching par as the average score in the 72-man field jumped from 73.29 in the first round to 74.69 in the third.
The Buffs collectively recorded just eight birdies Tuesday, with 58 pars, 39 bogeys, four doubles and a quadruple.
“The hole locations were much more difficult,” head coach Roy Edwards said. “It was really tough out there, really hard. This is a major championship test, and in fields like this on a course like this, it’s hard to play 72 holes straight without having some struggles. And everyone went through it, this is one of USC’s home courses and they’re dead even with us through three rounds. It’s just a big time challenge out there, but the truth is that it is very fair. The greens are very firm and very, very fast. This is a top 10 golf course in the world since they restored it three years ago.”
“I thought we did okay under the circumstances, and of course we wanted to play better,” Edwards added. “But we had way too many three-putts, my guess is somewhere around 20, 25. We were in pretty good spots for the most part, we only had a few bad approach shots, so for the most part things were in our control putting-wise. Much of the damage was early.”
CU’s six players were collectively 15-over par through just five holes, and also were 10-over the last three.
Freshman Philip Juel-Berg continued to pace the Buffaloes, though he shot a 7-over 77 in the third round; his 7-over 217 is tied for 20th on the 7,236-yard, par-70 Los Angeles Country Club’s North Course design. He had 11 pars and seven bogeys on his day, with his 39 pars tied for the most in the field and his 4.07 average on the par-4 holes is sixth best. Of the 16 freshmen in the field (including three redshirts), Juel-Berg is fifth among them heading into the last 18 holes.
Junior Johnny Hayes shot CU’s best round of the day, a 4-over 74, which gave him a 10-over 220 total that has him tied for 27th. He had two birdies, 10 pars and six bogeys for his round; he turned at 5-over but was one of the few players in the field to play either nine under par when he had both of his birds and just one bogey on the front side.
Senior Derek Fribbs turned in a 6-over 76 for a 221 score (11-over), as he had two birdies and eight pars against eight bogeys Wednesday. He was even though 10 holes but bogeyed six of the last eight holes coming into the clubhouse.
Fribbs and Juel-Berg have yet to have a score worse than a bogey.
Sophomore David Oraee fashioned a 5-over 75, which has him in as 12-over 222 for 54 holes; he had a birdie and 11 pars against six bogeys for his effort on the day. Like many of his teammates, he was over par early, in his case, 4-over seven holes in, but settled down and played the last 11 at just 1-over.
Redshirt freshman Drew Trujillo shot an 8-over 78 for a 233 score (23-over), as he had 10 pars against six bogeys and a double for the third round. Tied for 67th in the field, he opened with a double on No. 10 and then bogeyed the next three holes to stand 5-over just four holes in, but gathered himself to reel off eight straight pars.
Senior Jason Burstyn, CU’s No. 1 player and leader in stroke average (72.15), continued to struggle, though was playing a little better than he did Monday until he was derailed on his final hole of the day, the par-3 No. 9 where he scored a quadruple bogey after having some trouble in the bunker. He finished with a 9-over 79 for a 234 total (plus-24), which has him in 69th place entering the final round. He started the round well with a birdie, and had scored his third of the day right before the disaster on No. 9. Burstyn came into the meet with just one triple bogey in 34 rounds (and just three in 68 rounds dating to last year), but has had to endure a triple and a quad here this week.
Cal’s Max Homa is still riding his first round course record 61 and extended his individual lead to five strokes, as he shot a 71 in the third round for an 8-under 202. UCLA freshman Jonathan Garrick also shot a 71 for a 3-under 207 total, with four others six strokes back at 2-under 208.
The fourth and final round is set for Wednesday, with play beginning at 9 a.m. MDT off both the No. 1 and 10 tees; Colorado will be paired with USC and Oregon State and will begin play off the back nine on Wednesday in the first six groups to start the day.
“We’re hoping this was our ‘struggle’ round of the week and that we will finish strong and rebound Wednesday,” Edwards said.
NOTES: Through 54 holes, just six players are under par and two others at even … After six eagles were recorded on Monday, just one went into the books Tuesday … Fribbs (-4) and Hayes (-3) are two of just 18 players in the field to be more than 2-under par on the three par-5 holes … The Pac-12 Network will air highlights of the championship on Saturday, May 11, at Noon MDT.
CU BUFF GOLFERS FINISH SECOND AT UNM TUCKER INVITATIONAL
Sep 29th
The Buffaloes entered the day in third place, 15 shots back of the Lobos, and pulled to within 11 strokes early; but the home team got hot in the middle of the round and pulled away, finishing with a 15-under par 848 team score for a 29-stroke victory over the Buffaloes. Colorado posted a 14-over team score of 878, while San Francisco, in second after two rounds, slipped to third with a 22-over 886 tally.

Colorado is one of three schools to have played in all 58 Tucker invitationals (along with host New Mexico and New Mexico State); the Buffs have never won here but did also finish second in 1956 and 1981.
Senior Jason Burstyn and sophomore David Oraee led the Buffaloes here, as both tied for seventh with 1-over par 217 scores on the 7,578-yard, par-72 UNM Championship golf course.
Burstyn closed his efforts with a 4-over 76, scoring two birdies and six bogeys with 10 pars; his 12 birdies led cu for the week as he posted his third top 10 finish in four meets this fall.
Oraee had three birdies, nine pars and six bogeys en route to his final round 75 (3-over), as he duplicated his finish earlier in the week at CU’s Mark Simpson Invitational. He also has three top 10 efforts this season.
Senior Beau Schoolcraft recorded the team’s best individual score for the second straight round, and was the only Buff under par in the final round with a 1-under 71; he played a solid 18 with three birdies and 13 pars against just bogeys to finish up with a 4-over 220 score which tied him for 13th place (his third top 20 finish this fall). He had eight birdies, a team-best 34 pars and 12 bogeys for the tourney.
Senior Derek Fribbs tied for 38th with a 75 Saturday for a 10-over 226 score. He wrapped things up with two birdies, 12 pars, three bogeys and a double. Freshman Philip Juel-Berg tied for 53rd after fashioning a 2-over 74 in the final round for a 14-over 230. He had two birdies, 12 pars and four bogeys Saturday.
Junior Johnny Hayes competed here as an individual, closing things out with a 5-over 77 (one birdie, 11 par, six bogeys). That also gave him a 14-over 230 total, thus tying Juel-Berg with a 53rd place finish. He had CU’s lone eagle here this weekend with four birdies and 30 pars.
“We got off to a good start and made up a couple of shots, but the New Mexico just hit the gas and ran away from everyone,” coach Roy Edwards said. “We knew the guys would be a little tired from a pretty long week (CU’s tournament was last Monday and Tuesday), and we kind of ran out of gas and didn’t play very well on the back nine. But it’s a credit to the guys to still go out there and shoot the fourth lowest round of the day and also move into second place. We still matched the highest we’ve ever finished here, and it had been three decades since we finished this high.
“I don’t think any team in the country would have beaten New Mexico today. So we’re excited about that.”
CU’s 7-over 295 score on Saturday trailed New Mexico’s 281, the best team round of the tournament, and Minnesota and UTEP’s rounds (294) by a single shot.
New Mexico’s Gavin Green recorded a final round 69 for a 7-under 209 total to win by one stroke over Minnesota’s Erik Van Rooyen, who closed with a 71 and a 210 score.
The Buffaloes, now 37-2 against Division I competition in three tournaments this fall, are off for two weeks until Oct. 8-9, when they will travel to Portland to take part in the Pac-12 Conference Fall Preview.
“Overall, it was a good, solid week for the Buffaloes,” Edwards added. “While we didn’t play our best today, Beau turned in a quality round and Jason and David had solid tournaments.”
BUFFALO INDIVIDUALS (*—played as an individual)
T7. Jason Burstyn………………………………….. 68-73-76—217
T7. David Oraee……………………………………… 69-73-75—217
T13. Beau Schoolcraft……………………………… 77-72-71—220
T38. Derek Fribbs…………………………………….. 75-76-75—226
T53. Philip Juel-Berg………………………………… 79-77-74—230
T53. *Johnny Hayes………………………………… 75-78-77—230
TOP 5 INDIVIDUALS
1. Gavin Green, New Mexico……………………. 71-69-69—209
2. Erik Van Rooyen, Minnesota……………….. 66-73-71—210
3. John Catlin, New Mexico……………………… 76-69-67—212
4. Cory McElyea, San Francisco……………… 69-69-75—213
5. Pete Fernandez, UC-Irvine…………………… 70-69-75—214
TEAM SCORES
1. New Mexico………………………………….. 283-285-281—849
2. Colorado…………………………………….. 289-294-295—878
3. San Francisco………………………………. 297-284-305—886
4. Brigham Young…………………………….. 298-293-299—890
4. Minnesota……………………………………. 288-308-294—890
4. Baylor………………………………………….. 296-290-304—890
7. Texas-El Paso………………………………. 299-298-294—891
8. UC-Irvine……………………………………… 287-301-304—892
9. Arizona…………………………………………. 293-299-303—895
10. Utah…………………………………………….. 303-297-302—902
11. Texas-San Antonio……………………….. 301-299-305—905
12. New Mexico State…………………………. 304-299-305—908
13. Wyoming………………………………………. 308-292-310—910
14. Pepperdine…………………………………… 310-300-308—918
Fribbs Leads Way For Buffs With 9-Under, 3rd Place Effort
Sep 26th
ERIE, Colo. — The University of Colorado men’s golf team tied its third-best single round in program history but came up just a little bit short in defending its title in its own 3rd Annual Mark Simpson-CU Invitational, as Pac-12 Conference rival Oregon State held off the Buffaloes’ charge in winning by two strokes.
The Beavers closed things out with a 6-under 282 score for a tournament total of 843, or 21-under par. The Buffs recorded a 13-under par 275 to jump from fourth after two rounds into the runner-up spot with an 845 score, while Colorado State held the third position it entered the day in, finishing with an 847 score. Missouri-Kansas City, the first round leader, captured fourth with an 854 score while Kansas and Texas-Arlington tied for fifth (858).
After hanging around par for the first six holes, the Buffs collectively caught fire, the four scorers playing the last dozen holes at 13-under par; three of the four shot rounds in the 60s Tuesday with the fourth posting a 2-under 70 the 7,771-yard, par-72 Colorado National Golf Club course. The 19-under team score marked the fifth-best effort in relation to par in school history for a 54-hole tournament.
“It obviously was a good day, any time you shoot the low round of the tournament in the last round it’s a good thing,” CU head coach Roy Edwards said. “We really didn’t play that well the first six or seven holes; we weren’t terrible, just not getting deep into the red numbers. But we really brought it back after that, and that shows the character of the guys on our team.
“We were in sixth if not seventh place early on, and at least 17 strokes back,” he continued. “The thing that was really gratifying was that they didn’t look any different the way they were playing at the end of the day than they did at the start of things yesterday. That’s a sign that the guys really trust in their abilities, are very even keel. Today, we got a little mojo going and were able to get things really going without our best player scoring as well as he’s capable of.”
“Oregon State’s got a really good team, so we were pleased that were able to push them at the end.”
Senior Derek Fribbs led the Buffaloes here with a third place individual finish, finishing up with a 5-under 67 that gave him a 207 total for the meet, or 9-under par. He closed things out with an eagle, three birdies and 14 pars Tuesday, scoring a team-best 13 birdies which were also the eighth most in the 80-man field. He tied for second in par-5 scoring (7-under) and was seventh in par-4 scoring (3-under) while playing CNGC’s difficult par-3’s at just one over, which was 10th best among all the participants.
“Derek really played consistent,” Edwards noted. “When he made any mistakes at all, they were small ones, which in turn really contributed to him playing so consistent. He’s continued to get better over his four years here and it’s really starting to come together for him overall. He’s pretty good at a lot of things and has very minimal weaknesses in his game anymore.”
Sophomore David Oraee tied for seventh, as he put a 69 into the books in the final round for a 54-hole score of 210, or 6-under par. He had five birdies and two bogey with 13 pars Tuesday, as he closed with 12 birdies over the three rounds, tied for 10th most in the field, with his 37 pars a team-high. He was fifth in par-3 scoring (1-under) and 11th in par-5 scoring (5-under) while playing the par-4 holes even.
Both Fribbs and Oraee recorded par or better on 49 of the 54 holes played here; each had four bogeys and a double for their only holes over par.
Senior Beau Schoolcraft fashioned a 3-under 69 in his final round, enabling him to crack par for the tournament, tying for 20th at 2-under 214. He had six birdies, nine pars and three bogeys his final time around CNGC, the six birdies a team-best in the final round; he scored nine of those with 37 pars, the 12th-most in the field, over 54 holes. He played the par-5s at 6-under, tied for fifth-best, with his 1-over on the 12 par-3s for the tourney tying for 10th best.
Freshman Philip Juel-Berg ended things with a 2-under 70, giving him an even-par 216 scorecard overall; he led the field in par-3 scoring, playing the dozen holes collectively at 3-under. He recorded 10 birdies in the meet (four on Tuesday), with 36 pars (tied for 19th) against six bogeys and a double.
Senior Jason Burstyn, a two-time champion in as many tournaments entering CU’s home tourney, wound up tying for 52nd after closing with a 4-over 76 for a 6-over 222 total. He had his moments but never got things rolling like he did at the Ballyneal Challenge or at the Air Force Invitational, finishing up Tuesday with a birdie, 13 pars, three bogeys and just the second double bogey (out of 144 holes) this fall. He had six birdies and 37 pars overall, against 10 bogeys and the lone double.
Was Edwards concerned about his No. 1 player’s performance? Not at all. As the seventh-year CU coach was wrapping things up some two-plus hours after the tournament ended, the lone golfer at the far end of the driving range was his two-time medalist in 2012.
Four Buffaloes played as individuals, typical for the host school of a tournament to get its entire eligible roster some added experience. The newest Buffalo made the biggest splash, as junior Johnny Hayes finished ninth overall with a 5-under 211 score after wrapping things up with a 1-over 73. The transfer from Towson (Md.) State had 11 birdies and 30 pars while finishing high in par-4 (2-under, 16th) and par-5 (5-under, 11th).
“He did a great job in his first college tournament in almost two years,” Edward noted. “He spent some time away from the game but missed it so much that he wanted to get back into it. He had some very good results back east in a couple of amateur competitions, but this was still impressive for his first time out. He caught everyone’s attention.”
Redshirt freshman Drew Trujillo tied for 35th (75—218, 2-over) scoring 15 pars and three bogeys in his final round; he had nine birdies and 35 pars with nine bogeys and a double for his three rounds. Another redshirt frosh, Tyler Engel, finished 74th after closing with a 77 for a 13-over 229 total; he had five birds and 35 pars against 12 bogeys, a double and a quad.
Freshman Ross Thornton wrapped things up with a 6-over 78; he finished in the 80th position (last) as he was disqualified in the second round for signing for an incorrect scorecard.
CSU’s Kirby Pettit was the medalist, but he may be thinking what could have been. He opened with a bogey and the settled down with a par – and then caught fire. He played the next five holes at 5-under (an eagle and three birdies), then scored another eagle and two more birds on the back for a tournament low score of 8-under 64. That combined with a 71-67 effort on Monday gave him a 14-under 202 total, good for a three-shot win over Oregon State’s Brian Jung.
The Buffaloes turn right around and will play in the University of New Mexico’s Tucker Invitational, traveling to Albuquerque for the 54-hole tournament this Friday (36 holes) and Saturday (18). Fourteen teams will participate in he Tucker, including two schools who played here this week, Utah and Wyoming.
BUFFALO INDIVIDUALS (*—played as an individual)
3. Derek Fribbs………………………… 70-70-67—207
T7. David Oraee…………………………. 73-68-69—210
9. *Johnny Hayes……………………… 71-67-73—211
T20. Beau Schoolcraft…………………… 72-73-69—214
T27. Philip Juel-Berg…………………….. 75-71-70—216
T35. *Drew Trujillo……………………….. 71-72-75—218
T52. Jason Burstyn………………………. 75-71-76—222
74. *Tyler Engel…………………………. 83-69-77—229
80. *Ross Thornton…………………….. 74-DQ-78
TOP 10 INDIVIDUALS
1. Kirby Pettitt, Colorado State……… 71-67-64—202
2. Brian Jung, Oregon State………….. 67-71-67—205
3. Derek Fribbs, Colorado………….. 70-70-67—207
4. Nathan Hughes, UMKC…………….. 67-68-73—208
T5. Chris Gilbert, Kansas……………….. 69-71-69—209
T5. Korbin Kuehn, UMKC……………….. 68-70-71—209
T7. David Oraee, Colorado…………… 73-68-69—210
T7. Riley Fleming, UT-Arlington……….. 67-72-71—210
9. Johnny Hayes, Colorado………… 71-67-73—211
T10. Sean Walsh, Gonzaga………………. 69-69-74—212
T10. Oskar Arvidsson, Denver………….. 70-69-73—212
T10. Nick Chianello, Oregon State……… 69-71-72—212
T10. David Fink, Oregon State………….. 72-69-71—212
T10. Kyle Westmoreland, Air Force……. 73-70-69—212
T10. Victor Doka, Denver…………………. 70-70-72—212
T10. Hunter Brown, UT-Arlington………. 72-68-72—212
T10. Alex Gutesha, Kansas………………. 70-70-72—212
TEAM SCORES
1. Oregon State…………………….. 284-277-282—843
2. Colorado………………………….. 290-280-275—845
3. Colorado State…………………… 289-279-279—847
4. Missouri-Kansas City………….. 280-282-292—854
5. Kansas…………………………….. 287-283-288—858
5. Texas-Arlington………………….. 287-285-286—858
7. Northern Colorado………………. 292-283-286—861
8. Denver……………………………… 295-278-292—865
9. Air Force…………………………… 295-284-288—867
10. Gonzaga……………………………. 296-283-290—869
11. Houston Baptist…………………. 290-294-286—870
12. Texas State………………………. 295-288-290—873
13. Wyoming………………………….. 308-282-286—876
14. Utah………………………………… 287-299-297—883





















