NCAA Championships: 10 players to watch
19 May 2012
by Benjamin Larsen of AmateurGolf.com
see also: Jordan Spieth Rankings
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The stars were out at NCAA Division I
Regional
Championship events across the nation
the last three days. With a slew of top
programs and players making headlines
during the regional rounds, and many of
those same players bound to make a
difference in the NCAA Championship May
29-June 3 at Riviera Country Club here is a
look at 10 players likely to be in the mix
following stellar regional
play:
1.)
Patrick
Cantlay: The No. 1-ranked amateur in
the world and the No. 9 player in the
NCAA tied for 19th at the NCAA Division I
Bowling Green Regional. With his UCLA
Bruins placing a solid 3rd --- clinching a
berth into the team championship ---
Cantlay was a mediocre 4-over over the
course of the three-day event but had
played well in Rounds 1 and 2. He entered
Saturday's final round at even par,
finishing with a 4-over 76. Regardless of
his finish in the regional, Cantlay, who
finished second in last year's individual
championship, will be a player to watch at
Riviera.
2.)
Patrick
Rodgers: The World's No. 3 player
was tied for 10th at the Palo Alto West
Regional where his Stanford team finished
fourth and will be moving on. Rodgers was
in contention following a first-round 70
and a 66 on Friday but wasn't able to
make up the ground over medalist Josh
Anderson of Pepperdine. With the Cardinal
a potential threat in the team
championship, Rodgers, who won last
year's Porter Cup, has the pedigree to
make noise in the individual race.
3.)
Brandon
Hagy: The amateurgolf.com
Tournament Series regular fired a terrific
11-under at the Palo Alto regional,
finishing alone in third place. His effort
helped power the Cal Bears to a six-shot
victory in the team competition. The Bears
will be among the favorites at Riviera and
Hagy very well could be too in the
individual competition. He was a
consistent 67-66-66--199 in the regional.
4.)
Max Homa:
Hagy's Cal teammate Homa is among
the hottest players in college golf. His
season included four Top 5 finishes and
five Top 10s and he's ranked 15th in the
U.S. amateurgolf.com rankings. He has
continued his strong play in the
postseason as he finished tied for 10th at
the Palo Alto Regional, firing a 4-under
206 over the three-day event.
5.)
Chris Williams:
The No. 4 player in the U.S.
amateurgolf.com rankings (5th in the
World) powered Washington to the NCAA
Southwest Regional title with his medalist-
winning 73-68-68-209 score.
6.)
Jordan Spieth:
The top-ranked college golfer
according to Golfweek and the No. 18
player in the U.S. according to the
amateurgolf.com U.S. Rankings was only
eight shots off the pace at the Southwest
Regional. The Texas ace fired a 2-over 66-
77-74-217 but will absolutely be
considered among the favorites at Riviera.
7.)
Justin
Thomas: The Kentucky native helped
lead Alabama to a dominating Southeast
Regional victory and garnered medalist
honors along the way. His only
competition while shooting a terrific 67-67-
70 over the three-day event was
teammates Bobby Wyatt and Cory
Whitsett, who finished second and third,
respectively. Following a stellar regular
season and a 25-shot regional victory,
expect Alabama and Thomas --- along with
Wyatt and Whitsett --- to be making
headlines later this month.
8.)
Stephan Jaegar: If the
Chattanoogga
golfer was under the radar entering the
NCAA Regionals, consider his cover blown.
The 20th-ranked NCAA golfer according to
Golfweek fired a 70-67-66--203 to take
medalist honors at the Bowling Green
Regional, winning by four shots.
9.)
Pedro Figueirido: Cantlay gets
most of
the attention, as expected, but UCLA also
has depth. Figueiredo, who was the
runner-up behind Jaegar, could use the
momentum gained during his Regional run
to make another one at Riviera.
10.)
Blayne Barber:
The 16th-ranked player in the U.S.
and No. 8 player in Golfweek's NCAA
rankings finished fourth in at the
Greensboro Regional. The Auburn ace
showed signs of life with a second-round
68. With his pedigree and ability to play
well in key events, don't be surprised to
see Barber in the mix at Riviera.