Saturday, April 26, 2008 | 7:20 p.m.
TUCSON -- UNLV sophomore Eddie Olson shot a final-round 1-under-par 70 Saturday and claimed the individual title at the 2008 Mountain West Conference Men's Golf Championship on the Catalina Course at Tucson National. Olson finished three shots ahead of the field and tied the MWC Championship record for margin of victory.
Olson finished the tournament with a 54-hole total of 4-under 209, while three golfers tied for second at 1-under. The win was the first in Olson's collegiate career.
Olson's three-shot victory tied the conference championship record for margin of victory, which was set in 2002 and tied in 2004. Olson is the third Rebel to win individual medalist honors at the MWC Championship, joining Ryan Moore (2004) and Michael Kirk (2000).
Colorado State, which entered Saturday's final round in fourth-place and eight shots back, was the only team under par on Saturday with a 6-under 278 and catapulted itself to its first men's golf title, finishing at 2-under 850. TCU shot a final-round 6-over 290 and finished in second at 2-over 854, while BYU was 9-over on Saturday and finished third at 5-over 857. UNLV, ranked 15th in the nation, shot a final-round 8-over 292 and finished fourth at 7-over 859, while Utah rounded out the top five at 14-over.
Other Rebel final-round scores, places and totals: Seung-Su Han (73, T10th, 2-over 215), Brett Kanda (75, T10th, 2-over 215), Matt Kinsinger (74, T32nd, 9-over 222) and Ji Moon (79, T36th, 12-over 225).
At the conclusion of the championship, the league announced the all-conference team and league awards. UNLV had three representatives on the 10-person All-Mountain West Conference team in Han, Kinsinger and Olson. San Diego State's Aaron Goldberg won golfer of the year, his teammate Matt Hoffenberg was freshman of the year and Colorado State's Jamie Bermel won coach of the year. Other all-conference team members were BYU's Robbie Fillmore, Colorado State's Bryce Hanstad and Dustin Morris, Goldberg, Hoffenberg and teammate David Palm and TCU's Franklin Corpening.
UNLV will learn its destination for the NCAA Regionals when the field is announced Monday, May 5.
Join the Discussion:
Check this out for a full explanation of our conversion to the LiveFyre commenting system and instructions on how to sign up for an account.
Full comments policy