The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Amer Ari Invitational
No. 7 Men's Golf takes second at Amer Ari Invitational
02.04.2011 | Men's Golf
Feb. 4, 2011
KOHALA COAST, Hawaii - Fueled by a 5-under effort from senior Bobby Hudson through his last four holes, No. 7 Texas climbed the leaderboard and took second place Friday at the 20-team Amer Ari Invitational at the Waikoloa King's Course.
Texas shot the low round of the day with a 13-under 275 that bested the nearest team by three strokes. The Longhorns finished at 29-under par for the tournament and five shots behind tournament champion Oklahoma State (-34). No. 1 UCLA took third place one shot behind the Longhorns at 28-under par, while Georgia Tech took fourth at 20-under par. USC round out the top-five at 19-under par. Oregon's Daniel Miernicki defeated UT's Hudson and UCLA's Patrick Cantlay in a playoff to capture individual medalist honors.
Hudson (Memphis, Tenn.) was in line to secure a top-10 individual finish before his 5-under par effort through the final four holes vaulted him into a tie for first place with Oregon's Miernicki and UCLA's Cantlay. Hudson, who started his final round at the fourth hole, commenced a late rally that began at No. 18, a par-five at 501 yards that he would go on to eagle.
Looking for more, Hudson birdied No. 1 - a par-four - and sank a birdie at No. 2, a par-five at a mammoth 562 yards. Hudson sank his third consecutive birdie - all after the eagle at No. 18 - and tied Oregon's Miernicki and UCLA's Cantlay to force a playoff. Hudson was eliminated after the third hole, and it took Miernicki until the seventh hole to defeat Cantlay and win the individual title. Hudson fell just shy of winning his second consecutive Amer Ari Invitational after winning the 2010 event at Mauna Lani Resort.
"This whole week was just a lot of fun," Hudson said. "It was the most fun I've ever had, those last couple of holes, where we had a lot of Texas supporters and my teammates out there. I might have lost the playoff, but I enjoyed myself."
UT sophomore Cody Gribble (Dallas, Texas) saved his best for last, as he fired a 4-under 68 and finished in ninth place at 8-under par. Gribble scattered birdies at the second, sixth, eighth, 14th and 17th holes and garnered the ninth top-10 finish of his young college career.
Junior Dylan Frittelli (Pretoria, South Africa), the 2010 Big 12 Conference Player of the Year, carded a 1-under 71 in the final round and sank birdies at the first, 10th and 18th holes. Frittelli tied for 22nd place at 4-under par. Sophomore Julio Vegas (Maturin, Venezuela) carded a 2-over 74 and sank a birdie at the second hole Vegas tied for 51st place at 1-over for the tournament.
Freshman Toni Hakula was the third Longhorn to break 70 in round three, as he fired a 3-under 69 behind an eagle at No. 2 and birdies at Nos. 5 and 17. Hakula finished his first collegiate event in a tie for 51st place at 1-over par. Junior Adam Wennerstrom (Austin, Texas), playing as an individual, carded a 1-under 71 with birdies at the second, third and 18th holes. Wennerstrom tied for 51st place at 1-over par.
Texas resumes play on Feb. 20 at the Puerto Rico Classic.
POST-ROUND COMMENTS
Texas senior Bobby Hudson
On his five-under par run through the final four holes
"I hit my drive at No. 18, and we had a good number (of yards) to go from the right rough. Coach Fields liked the 5-iron, and I hit the 5-iron to about eight feet from the pin and made the putt for eagle. At No. 1, I hit a great drive and hit a sand wedge in. It was a flyer lie that jumped out quickly and went to the back of the green. The putt was a 50-footer up and over a mound. I made it, and it became a lot more fun at that point. The next hole, at No. 2, my 17th hole, I hit a great drive, but I hit my second shot into the bunker. I hit a 35-yard shot out of the bunker and got within two feet of the pin and tapped in for birdie. At No. 3, the par-three was playing shorter at 20 mph downwind. I hit a 6-iron within 30 feet of the hole, and I ended the day by making that putt."
Texas head coach John Fields
"Today was an interesting day. We needed a lot of patience today because the hole locations were significantly difficult, more so than the first two days. I was pleased with the guys' patience. We didn't get the win, but we had the best score today and made a run for the championship. It was great to watch our guys finish the way they did. Bobby's 67 was outstanding. Cody Gribble played really solid today and picked up a top-10 finish, which was nice. Dylan Frittelli was very good again with his 71. He didn't have his best stuff, but he played well. It was great to have Toni Hakula shoot a 69 and really give us a boost. I was really pleased with everyone's effort. To have guys like Toni Hakula and Julio Vegas play solid golf all week long…that's great for our golf team going forward."
Amer Ari Invitational - Waikoloa King's Course
2. TEXAS 282-278-275-835 (-29)
Texas Players
T2. Bobby Hudson 69-67-67-203 (-13)
9. Cody Gribble 69-71-68-208 (-8)
T22. Dylan Frittelli 70-71-71-212 (-4)
T51. Julio Vegas 74-69-74-217 (+1)
T51. Toni Hakula 77-71-69-217 (+1)
T51. (i) Adam Wennerstrom 74-72-71-217 (+1)
