Morales grabs individual title, leads UCLA to team crown in its first appearance in Big Ten Championship

 

   You’d think with the wind howling at Baltimore Country Club’s Five Farms East Course, that it would be an old-school Big Ten team like Illinois, winner of the conference championship in 13 of the previous 15 years, that would be the beneficiary.

   But no, it was UCLA, one of the new shooters from the West Coast that joined the Big Ten following the demise of the Pac-12, that figured out the gusty winds that made the challenge of the A.W. Tillinghast gem even more formidable the best of all as the Bruins claimed the Big Ten team title in their debut at the conference championship.

   Not that the Fightin’ Illini went down without, well, a fight. Illinois, under veteran head coach Mike Small, took a six-shot lead over another of the former Pac-12 powers, Oregon, into Sunday’s final round.

   But UCLA, behind individual champion Omar Morales, a senior from Mexico and No.13 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), put together a final round of 2-over-par 282 over the windswept 7,181-yard, par-70 Five Farms East layout to jump to the top of the final leaderboard with a 2-over 842 total.

   Morales was the best player all weekend as he opened with a 4-under 66 and added a 3-under 67 in the second round when warm, humid, showery weather morphed into clear and windy conditions that was a preview of what was to come. That gave Morales a two-shot lead in the individual chase going into Sunday’s final round.

   Morales kept his poise in the difficult conditions of the final round as he matched par with a 70 and cruised to a three-shot victory with a 7-under 203 total. It was his third career individual win.

   UCLA had opened with a 2-under 278 in Friday’s benign conditions and added a 2-over 282 in Saturday’s second round that left the Bruins eight shots behind front-running Illinois.

   In the Scoreboard, powered by clippd, rankings that came out in the aftermath of its Big Ten Championship victory, UCLA rose to No. 13.

   UCLA’s win at Five Farms East made it the automatic qualifier from the Big Ten to the NCAA regionals. The Bruins learned Wednesday that they will be seeded third in the Auburn Regional, hosted by the reigning NCAA champion Tigers at the Auburn University Club.

   Illinois, No. 14 in the Scoreboard rankings, might have taken its foot off the gas pedal a little with the lead it had built through two rounds and the knowledge that it would be hosting the Urbana Regional at Atkins Golf Club.

   It looked like same old, same old when the Fightin’ Illini posted a 10-under 270 in Friday’s opening round. They struggled a little in Saturday’s changing conditions with a 2-over 282, but didn’t handle the wild winds of Sunday’s final rounds well, closing with an 11-over 291 that left them a shot behind UCLA with a 3-over 843 total.

   Still, Illinois will be a three seed as the host when the Urbana Regional tees off May 12.

   Illinois has a talented core of veterans that helped it reach the match-play bracket in the NCAA Championship at the La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, Calif. a year ago, but it was a freshman, Jack Birdwell of Blaine, Minn., who led the Illini at Five Farms East.

   Birdwell recorded back-to-back 2-under 68s in the first two rounds and matched par in the final round with a 70 to share third place in the individual standings with Maryland’s Yang Kuang, a sophomore from China, at 3-under 207.

   It was 11 shots back to Michigan State, No. 59 in the Scoreboard rankings, in third place as the Spartans closed with a 10-over 290 to finish with a 14-over 854 total. Michigan State had opened with a 1-over 281 before adding a 3-over 283 in Saturday’s second round.

   The third-place finish at Five Farms East might have been the boost the Spartans needed to earn a berth in the Tallahassee Regional at the Seminole Legacy Golf Club, where they will be seeded 10^th.

   Michigan State was led by Lorenzo Pinili, a sophomore from Rochester Hills, Mich. who finished in a tie for fifth place with Maryland’s Emil Riegger, a sophomore from Hinsdale, Ill., each landing on 1-under 209.

  Pinili signed for a solid 2-under 68 in Saturday’s second round after matching par in the opening round with a 70 and then closed with a 1-over 71 in Sunday’s gusty winds.

   Oregon, No. 36 in the Scoreboard rankings, was Illinois’ closest pursuer going into Sunday’s final round as the Ducks recorded back-to-back 1-under 279s in the first two rounds. But Oregon had trouble in the challenging conditions of the final round, closing with a 297 to fall back to fourth place, a shot behind Michigan State with a 15-over 855 total.

   Oregon will join UCLA in the field at the Auburn Regional, where the Ducks will be seeded sixth.

   The Ducks got a strong individual performance from Greyson Leach, a senior from Palos Verdes, Calif. who was the runnerup with a 4-under 206 total that left him three shots behind UCLA’s Moralies. Leach carded back-to-back 2-under 68s in the first two rounds before matching par in the final round with a 70.

   Ohio State finished two shots behind Oregon in fifth place with a 17-over 857 total. The Buckeyes bounced from an opening-round 292 with a solid 1-under 279 in Saturday’s second round before closing with a 296.

   Wisconsin and Maryland finished in a tie for sixth place, each ending up a shot behind Ohio State with an 18-over 858 total.

   The Badgers registered back-to-back 2-over 282s in the first two rounds before closing with a 294.

   After matching par in the opening round with a 280, the Terrapins, playing close to home in Baltimore, added a 2-over 282 in Saturday’s second round before closing with a 296.

   Maryland was strong at the top of the lineup as Kuang finished in a tie for third place with Illinois’ Birdwell at 3-under and Riegger ended up in a tie for fifth with Michigan State’s Pinili at 1-under.

   Kuang opened with a sparkling 3-under 67 before matching par in each of the final two rounds with back-to-back 70s. Riegger matched par in Saturday’s second round after opening with a 2-under 68 before finishing up with a 1-over 71.

   While Maryland did not earn a bid to an NCAA Regional, Riegger was invited to tee it up as an individual in the Amherst Regional at Poplar Grove Golf Club in Amherst, Va.

   It was a tough finish to the season for Penn State as the Nittany Lions finished in 16^th place in the 18-team field with a 43-over 883 total. After opening with a 9-over 289, Penn State added an 11-over 291 in Saturday’s second round before struggling to a 303 in the windy conditions of the final round.

   Three other Big Ten teams that came into the conference championship with solid rankings, but struggled at Five Farms East, did earn regional bids when the fields were revealed Wednesday.

   Northwestern and Southern California, another of the teams that joined the Big Ten this year in the wake of the demise of the Pac-12, will be seeded sixth and ninth, respectively, in the Tallahassee Regional.

   The Wildcats, No. 34 in the Scoreboard rankings, finished in 12^th place at Five Farms East with a 28-over 868 total. The Trojans, No. 52 in the Scoreboard rankings, finished in 11^th place in their Big Ten Championship debut with a 27-over 867 total.

   Purdue, No. 37 in the Scoreboard rankings, will join Oregon in the Auburn Regional as a seven seed. The Boilermakers finished in ninth place in the Big Ten Championship with a 23-over 863 total.

   Backing up Morales for UCLA was Pablo Ereno, a senior from Spain and No. 11 in the WAGR who finished among the trio tied for 12^th place with a 2-over 282 total. Ereno was the low Bruin in UCLA’s final-round surge with a solid 2-under 68. He had opened with a 1-over 71 before adding a 3-over 73 in Saturday’s second round.

   Kyle An, a junior from Aliso Viejo, Calif., finished among the group tied for 23^rd place for UCLA with an 8-over 218 total as he opened with a 2-over 72 and added a 1-over 71 in Saturday’s second before closing with a 4-ovder 74.

   Baylor Larrabee, a freshman from Ferndale, Wash., finished in the group tied for 58^th place for the Bruins with a 12-over 222 total as he opened with a solid 1-under 69 and added a 4-over 74 in Saturday’s second round before struggling in the final round with a 79.

   UCLA head coach Armen Kirakassian brought along Luke Powell, a sophomore Laguna Niguel, Calif., as a substitute and went to him when Trevor Garus, a freshman from
Boise, Idaho, opened with a 5-over 75.

   Powell responded in a big way with back-to-back counting 1-over 71s that went a long way toward delivering the team crown to the Bruins.

   Illinois’ Ryan Voois, a junior from Ladera Ranch, Calif. and No. 77 in the WAGR, gave the Fightin’ Illini a second finisher inside the top seven as he headed a group of four players tied for seventh place with an even-par 210 total.

   Voois opened with a sparkling 3-under 67 and added a 3-over 73 in Saturday’s second round before matching par in the final round with a 70. Voois was in the lineup for Illinois in its quarterfinal loss to Georgia Tech in last year’s NCAA Championship.

   Jay Gould-Healy, a junior from Ireland, gave Oregon a second top-seven finisher as he joined the group tied for seventh place at even-par. Gould-Healy opened with a 3-under 67 and added a 1-under 69 in Saturday’s second round before backing off in Sunday’s tricky winds with a final round of 4-over 74.

   Rounding out the quartet tied for seventh place at even-par were Minnesota’s Jack Crousore, a freshman from Bluffton, S.C., and Ohio State’s Tyler Sabo, a redshirt sophomore from Ashland, Ohio.

   Crousore recorded a sparkling 4-under 66 in Saturday’s second round after opening with a 69 and only trailed UCLA’s Morales by two shots in the individual standings going into Sunday’s final round. He struggled in Sunday’s challenging conditions, finishing up with a 5-over 75.

   Sabo registered back-to-back 1-under 69s in the first two rounds before closing with a 2-over 72.

   Leading the way for Penn State were Jake Griffin, a senior from Kensington, Md., and Alex Creamean, a sophomore from Winnetka, Ill., as they finished among the group tied for 32^nd place at 8-over 218. Griffin and Creamean have been solid throughout the spring portion of the wraparound 2024-2025 season for the Nittany Lions.

   Griffin matched par in the opening round with a 70 and added a 3-over 73 in Saturday’s second round before closing with a 5-over 75. After opening with a 1-over 71, Creamean added a 3-over 73 in Saturday’s second round before closing with a 4-over 74.

   Andres Barraza, a junior from Parkland, Fla., finished in the group tied for 65^th place with a 223 total as he opened with a 4-over 74 and added a 2-over 72 in Saturday’s second round before closing with a 77.

   Will Preston, a freshman from Grand Rapids, Mich., finished among the group tied for 72^nd place at 224 as he added a 1-over 73 in Saturday’s second round to his opening-round 74 and closed with a 77.

   Rounding out the Penn State lineup was senior Morgan Lofland, a two-time PIAA Class AAA qualifier at Conestoga who finished in the group tied for 83^rd place with a 229 total.

   Lofland added a 1-over 73 in Saturday’s second round to his opening-round 75 before struggling in the final round with an 81.

   I go back a ways with Lofland as I first crossed paths with him when he earned the first of those two trips to the state tournament as a freshman in the Class AAA East Regional at Golden Oaks Golf Club in the fall of 2017.

   The Big Ten Championship might have been the last time Lofland teed it up as a Nittany Lion. He struggled at times at Penn State, but had a solid four years in Happy Valley.