Bruins prepare to play at U.S. Intercollegiates
By Daily Bruin Staff
April 18, 2001 9:00 p.m.
MEN’S GOLF U.S.
Intercollegiates Saturday-Sunday All Day Stanford, CA
By Pauline Vu
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
The captain of the UCLA men’s golf team feels pretty good
going to the Stanford golf course at this weekend’s U.S.
Intercollegiates.
That’s because when he went there during spring break for
the first time ever, Parker McLachlin got a hole-in-one on the
third hole.
“So I kinda feel like I own that hole,” he said with
a touch of pride.
There are just two tournaments left until NCAA West Regionals.
That’s just two tournaments for the golf team to prove they
belong at Regionals, which only takes the 12 top teams in
UCLA’s District 8. The Bruins are currently ranked 10th in
the district.
The players are confident entering U.S. Intercollegiates. Though
their last finish ““ 13th place out of 22 teams at the
Thunderbird/SAVANE Invitational ““ wasn’t great, but
McLachlin was pleased with the improvement the team made from the
first day to the second.
“We’re pretty positive after the last round of our
last tournament,” he said. “We basically got fifth out
of the Pac-10 teams; we usually finish seventh or ninth.”
One of the team’s true freshmen, John Merrick, broke out
at the Thunderbird, leading the team with his 11th place finish.
The next closest were two Bruins who tied for 41st place.
“We’re really proud of the way Johnny played last
tournament,” McLachlin said. “If we get him to keep
putting up numbers like that we’ll be in good shape come
Regionals.”
Rounding out the traveling five for UCLA are sophomores Travis
Johnson and J.T. Kohut and freshman Steve Conway.
The U.S. Intercollegiates, which will include all the Pac-10
teams, features several teams that UCLA needs to beat, including
Long Beach State and UC Irvine. The Bruins must play well at this
tournament.
“It’s crucial,” Johnson said. “This week
could clinch our spot in Regionals if we do well.”
