TicketsLAS VEGAS -- A three-hour lightning delay halfway through Tuesday's second round marred an otherwise fantastic start for the Cincinnati men's golf team, which is in 10th place and 11 strokes back of the No. 5 spot heading into Wednesday's finale of the Las Vegas Regional.
The Bearcats were 12-under through the first nine holes before the long stoppage at 12:05 p.m. PT and were 2-over in the second half. The mountains prevented any real precipitation from entering the course, and some wind lingered as the teams warmed up.
"We got off to the start we needed, sitting well after the first nine holes and 24-under overall, and then the weather came," head coach Doug Martin said. "The three-hour weather delay was one of those situations where I looked at (assistant coach) Austin Frick and asked 'when was the last time we had a delay that took us off the golf course?' We had three freshmen out there, and it was a learning experience for them."
Sam Jean's 5-under 67 was UC's lowest of the day, and he leads the way at 14th with an 8-under 136. He was 5-under for the first nine, mirroring his electric second round of the Columbus Regional last May.
"The mindset going into tomorrow is to go as low as we possibly can," Jean said. "There are so many birdies to be made out there. We haven't quite had it so far, and while we've played well, we've left a lot of shots out there. I think we can do something special tomorrow, and I'm looking forward to it."
Ryan Ford, who was celebrating his 19th birthday, remained steady with a 3-under 69 for 19th place. Rylan Wotherspoon jumped up the charts with a 4-under 68, a six-stroke improvement from Monday, and he is tied with Ty Gingerich for 44th. Only four others in the field have saw a better improvement than Wotherspoon on the day.
Martin made it clear there was plenty more on the table for the Bearcats, who saved their best round for last in each of the prior two tournaments. The AACs even saw them rally from sixth to second by week's end.
"My message to the team was everybody has to shoot 5-under tomorrow," he said. "That's our goal. We need to be 20-under to give ourselves a chance. I told them to get their chin off their chest, that there's no reason to pout, and we're gonna have a good dinner and get ready for tomorrow."
Freshman Wyatt Plattner subbed in for William McDonald on Tuesday as well to round out UC's scorecard.
Cincinnati Scores
T14. Sam Jean (136)
T19. Ryan Ford (137)
T44. Rylan Wotherspoon (142)
T44. Ty Gingerich (142)
74. Wyatt Plattner (76, one round)
Team Scores
1. Stanford (534)
2. Arizona State (538)
3. Virginia (543)
4. San Francisco (545)
5. Northwestern (546)
6. East Tennessee (547)
7. Oklahoma State (551)
8. UNC Greensboro (555)
9. Oregon State (556)
10. Cincinnati (557)
11. Davidson (562)
12. Long Beach State (563)
13. Kansas City (569)
14. Lehigh (587)
The Bearcats were 12-under through the first nine holes before the long stoppage at 12:05 p.m. PT and were 2-over in the second half. The mountains prevented any real precipitation from entering the course, and some wind lingered as the teams warmed up.
"We got off to the start we needed, sitting well after the first nine holes and 24-under overall, and then the weather came," head coach Doug Martin said. "The three-hour weather delay was one of those situations where I looked at (assistant coach) Austin Frick and asked 'when was the last time we had a delay that took us off the golf course?' We had three freshmen out there, and it was a learning experience for them."
We are currently in a lightning delay. pic.twitter.com/rYYb4plN4f
— Cincinnati M-Golf (@GoBearcatsMGOLF) May 16, 2023
Sam Jean's 5-under 67 was UC's lowest of the day, and he leads the way at 14th with an 8-under 136. He was 5-under for the first nine, mirroring his electric second round of the Columbus Regional last May.
"The mindset going into tomorrow is to go as low as we possibly can," Jean said. "There are so many birdies to be made out there. We haven't quite had it so far, and while we've played well, we've left a lot of shots out there. I think we can do something special tomorrow, and I'm looking forward to it."
Ryan Ford, who was celebrating his 19th birthday, remained steady with a 3-under 69 for 19th place. Rylan Wotherspoon jumped up the charts with a 4-under 68, a six-stroke improvement from Monday, and he is tied with Ty Gingerich for 44th. Only four others in the field have saw a better improvement than Wotherspoon on the day.
Martin made it clear there was plenty more on the table for the Bearcats, who saved their best round for last in each of the prior two tournaments. The AACs even saw them rally from sixth to second by week's end.
"My message to the team was everybody has to shoot 5-under tomorrow," he said. "That's our goal. We need to be 20-under to give ourselves a chance. I told them to get their chin off their chest, that there's no reason to pout, and we're gonna have a good dinner and get ready for tomorrow."
Freshman Wyatt Plattner subbed in for William McDonald on Tuesday as well to round out UC's scorecard.
Day 2 is underway! 🔒
— Cincinnati M-Golf (@GoBearcatsMGOLF) May 16, 2023
Freshman Wyatt Plattner starts us off in his postseason debut. #Bearcats | #NCAAGolf pic.twitter.com/gjlcpUrTCW
Cincinnati Scores
T14. Sam Jean (136)
T19. Ryan Ford (137)
T44. Rylan Wotherspoon (142)
T44. Ty Gingerich (142)
74. Wyatt Plattner (76, one round)
Team Scores
1. Stanford (534)
2. Arizona State (538)
3. Virginia (543)
4. San Francisco (545)
5. Northwestern (546)
6. East Tennessee (547)
7. Oklahoma State (551)
8. UNC Greensboro (555)
9. Oregon State (556)
10. Cincinnati (557)
11. Davidson (562)
12. Long Beach State (563)
13. Kansas City (569)
14. Lehigh (587)