Lone Bruin has poor showing at NCAA Golf Championships
By Daily Bruin Staff
June 4, 2000 9:00 p.m.
By Pauline Vu
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
Entering the NCAA Men’s Golf Championships on Wednesday,
senior golfer Brandon DiTullio was UCLA’s sole
representative, the only Bruin who had a good enough showing at the
West Regionals to make it that far.
But by the end of the second round the next day,
DiTullio’s UCLA career ended suddenly with a two-round
2-over-par 146 score that failed to make the cut to the final
rounds of Championship play on Friday and Saturday.
The first day at the Grand National Course in Opelika, Ala.,
DiTullio had a poor showing, shooting a 4-over-par 76.
“Overall I was just really frustrated,” he said in a
statement on Wednesday. But he was still hopeful for the second
day. “I’m still in there. I just need a good round
tomorrow to make the cut.”
On Thursday DiTullio had a better round, shooting a 2-under 70,
but it still wasn’t enough to qualify for the NCAA’s
final two rounds. He finished the second round tied for 62nd.
It was an abrupt end to an otherwise illustrious college career.
For three out of the four years he’s played at UCLA, DiTullio
has been the team’s best golfer. His sophomore year he was
the Bruins’ No. 1 man for a large part of the season,
eventually earning Second Team All-Pac-10 honors. He also had four
top-10 and seven top-20 finishes.
His junior season in 1998-99, DiTullio repeated as Second Team
All-Pac-10. That year, he won his first college event at the ASU
Thunderbird Tournament and led the Bruins to the team title in the
process. He had three top-10 and eight top-20 finishes.
After redshirting in 1999-2000 to concentrate on his business
economics major (he got a 3.5 and 4.0 for the fall and winter
quarters, respectively), DiTullio came back for the 2000-01 season
and picked up right where he left off.
As the only golfer to play in every event this year, he led the
team with a 72.7 scoring average. DiTullio had four top-10 finishes
(including winning the Anteater Invitational), six top-20 finishes,
and, for the third straight year, earned Second Team All-Pac-10
honors.
