The No. 1 University of Redlands men's golf team battled through a tough final round at the 2015 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) Championship Tournament to finish tied for third in the event with a three-day total of 893. However, with the aggregate scoring of all seven conference rounds determining the overall champion, the Bulldogs prevailed to win their 25th title with a combined score of 2,065, which was 19 strokes ahead of second-place University of La Verne. While capturing the program's first championship since 2006, Redlands gives Head Coach Butch Edge his first men's title since taking over the program six seasons ago.
On Tuesday, senior Bobby Holden (Simi Valley, CA) finished out the final conference round of his career with a 73 for a 54-hole total of 213 (67-74-73) to finish second in the individual standings for the second year in a row. He knocked in nine pars and four birdies during the last day. Overall, he converted 12 birdies at the tournament to lead Redlands and rank second among the field.
While not feeling his best, junior Ryan Turner (Ventura, CA) dug deep and stepped up with a solid showing of 75 to take seventh overall with a 224 (74-75-75). During the last round, he earned nine pars and converted four birdies, including three in a row on the front nine.
Junior John McCord (Oakland, CA) came off the course with a score of 78 to finish 17th with a 54-hole tally of 230 (77-75-78). In Tuesday's outing, he recorded 11 pars and one birdie in a consistent performance throughout the day. Overall, he led the Bulldogs with 35 pars at the tournament.
In addition, senior Anthony Estes (San Pedro, CA) completed the tournament in a tie for 18th, scoring a 231 with daily totals of 75, 76, and 80. On Tuesday, he notched 12 pars en route to a tournament tally of 33.
Freshmen Jake Ryan (Portland, OR) and Joseph Kuehn (Eugene, OR) wrapped up their inaugural SCIAC Championships with rounds of 78 and 74, respectively. Ryan tied for 24th after scoring 235 (78-79-78) during the regular-season finale. While finishing tied-for-27th at 238 (79-85-74), Kuehn signed his day-three scorecard with four birdies and nine pars to improve upon Monday's outing by 11 strokes.
Redlands now heads to the NCAA Division III Championships as the SCIAC's automatic qualifier. The national tournament takes place May 12-15 at the Grandover Resort in Greensboro, NC.
