University Southern California Trojans
Friday, October 18
Alpharetta, Ga.
All Day
USC
vs
Golf Club of Georgia Collegiate Invitational
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
Issei Tanabe
Photo by: Jeff Golden
Trojans To Try To Defend Title At Golf Club Of Georgia Collegiate
October 17, 2019 | Men's Golf, Features
Freshman Yuxin Lin returns to the lineup after Asia-Pacifc Am win.
The USC men's golf team, boasting All-American junior Kaito Onishi and exciting new freshman Yuxin Lin who is coming off a major amateur win, heads south to defend its 2018 title in the Golf Club of Georgia Collegiate Invitational, Friday through Sunday (Oct. 18-20) in Alpharetta, Ga.
The field for the tournament includes host and top-ranked Georgia Tech, USC, Clemson (12), Duke (6), East Tennessee State (29), North Carolina (5), Pepperdine (9), Southern California (37), Stanford (35), Tennessee (23), Texas A&M (21), TCU (79), UCLA (26), Virginia (124), Wake Forest (2). Rankings are from Golfweek.com.
The tournament starts at 6 a.m. PT each day. USC will tee off at 7:50 a.m. Friday and at 6 a.m. Saturday. Results will available at Golfstat.com.
The Trojan starting lineup will feature juniors Onishi and Issei Tanabe, sophomores Charlie Reiter and Cameron Henry and the freshman Lin.
USC won the event a season ago at 22-under 842, led by then-senior Justin Suh, who also took medalist honors at 14-under 202 (67-67-68). Onishi (tie for 15th) and Reiter (tie for 41st) are Troy's only two returners who played in last year's victory. The Trojans also won the event in 2008.
SEASON NOTES
The Trojans, playing without former world No. 1 and current pro Justin Suh for the first time in four years, tied for fifth in the season-opening Maui Jim Intercollegiate. They were led by Yuxin Lin, who tied for 12th in his collegiate debut while Issei Tanabe tied for 21st. USC was 11th at the Nike Golf Collegiate, led by Charlie Reiter, who tied for 19th at 2-under 211 (70-67-74).
Junior college transfer Leon D'Souza led three Trojans, who all played individually, in the Bill Cullum Invitational, tying for second at 13-under 203 (69-66-68). He finished five shots out of first. D'Souza posted three birdies and an eagle on the par 5 2nd hole in the final round. That followed his five-birdie, one-eagle performance in the second round and a seven-birdie first round.
BIG LIN WIN
USC freshman Yuxin Lin overcame a two-shot deficit at the start of the day, let slip a one-stroke advantage on 18, and then bounced back to win a two-hole playoff to capture the 2019 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championships at the Sheshan International Golf Club in Shanghai, China, on Sept. 19.
Lin became just the second two-time winner of the event while earning berths into the 2019 Masters and Open Championships.
Playing on home soil, the Beijing-native birdied the 18th hole twice in a playoff to defeat world No. 1 and defending champion Takumi Kanaya. Lin birdied the first playoff hole from about 10 feet to stay alive and then used a tap-in birdie to win the championship thanks to a magical bunker shot that landed within inches of the cup. Lin began the day two off the lead and finished at 10-under 278 (68-71-71-68), tied with Kanaya. Lin bogeyed 18 to give Kanaya the opportunity in the event's first-ever playoff.
USC OVERVIEW
USC, a three-time winner last year, returns five players from last year's squad in senior Kyle Suppa, juniors Issei Tanabe and Kaito Onishi as well as sophomores Charlie Reiter and Cameron Henry.
The Trojans are tasked with replacing the production of the graduated Justin Suh, the former world amateur No. 1 and also the 2019 Pac-12 Scholar-Athlete of the Year for men's golf. He was a four-time All-American and USC's first back-to-back first team selection (2018-19) since Jamie Lovemark (2007-08). He finished his senior season with a team-best 69.39 average, second-best in program history behind his own record (68.73), earning his third straight All-Pac-12 first team nod. Suh, a 2019 All-Nicklaus Team pick, had seven top-4 finishes in 2019 including two wins.
The Trojans, also without Ryan Slater and Owen Calvin-Smith from last year's roster, figure to be led this year by Onishi, a 2019 PING All-American honorable mention selection who was second on the Trojans in stroke average (71.55) to go with five top 10 finishes. He is not playing this weekend, however.
The 2018 Pac-12 Freshman of the Year and a 2019 All-Pac-12 first teamer had 13 rounds in the 60s as a sophomore. Among his five top 10s were a third at the Fighting Illini Invitational at 3-under 207 (68-69-70) and a tie for third at The Goodwin at 2-under 208 (69-66-73).
Suppa is the lone senior on the squad this year. He started all 13 events last year and finished with a 73.46 stroke average in 37 rounds. He had five 19 finishes and seven rounds under 70. He tied for fourth at 5-under 208 (73-68-67) at the Saint Mary's Invitational – a career-best effort – and tied for seventh at 5-under 211 (70-67-74) at the Golf Club of Georgia Collegiate Invitational.
Tanabe is the only other returning upperclassmen. A 2019 All-Pac-12 honorable mention selection, he was third on the Trojans with a stroke average of 72.42 in 38 rounds, including 12 rounds in the 60s, third-best on the team. He had four top 13 finishes, including a USC career-best second in Troy's come-from behind win at the Saint Mary's Invitational at 8-under 205 (72-68-65).
Reiter, a 2019 Pac-12 All-Freshman honorable mention pick, started eight of USC's events and played in 12 overall with 36 rounds. He had three rounds in the 60s and a stroke average of 71.58 in fall play and finished the season at 73.81. He posted a season-best tie for sixth at the Fighting Illini Invitational at 1-under 209 (72-71-66) and was 23rd at the Nike Golf Collegiate at 4-over 214 (69-72-73).
Henry played in just one tournament as a freshman but made the most of it, tying for fifth at 4-under 206 (66-69-71).
The Trojans welcome three newcomers in junior transfer Leon D'Souza and freshmen Tyler Guo and Yuxin Lin.
The field for the tournament includes host and top-ranked Georgia Tech, USC, Clemson (12), Duke (6), East Tennessee State (29), North Carolina (5), Pepperdine (9), Southern California (37), Stanford (35), Tennessee (23), Texas A&M (21), TCU (79), UCLA (26), Virginia (124), Wake Forest (2). Rankings are from Golfweek.com.
The tournament starts at 6 a.m. PT each day. USC will tee off at 7:50 a.m. Friday and at 6 a.m. Saturday. Results will available at Golfstat.com.
The Trojan starting lineup will feature juniors Onishi and Issei Tanabe, sophomores Charlie Reiter and Cameron Henry and the freshman Lin.
USC won the event a season ago at 22-under 842, led by then-senior Justin Suh, who also took medalist honors at 14-under 202 (67-67-68). Onishi (tie for 15th) and Reiter (tie for 41st) are Troy's only two returners who played in last year's victory. The Trojans also won the event in 2008.
SEASON NOTES
The Trojans, playing without former world No. 1 and current pro Justin Suh for the first time in four years, tied for fifth in the season-opening Maui Jim Intercollegiate. They were led by Yuxin Lin, who tied for 12th in his collegiate debut while Issei Tanabe tied for 21st. USC was 11th at the Nike Golf Collegiate, led by Charlie Reiter, who tied for 19th at 2-under 211 (70-67-74).
Junior college transfer Leon D'Souza led three Trojans, who all played individually, in the Bill Cullum Invitational, tying for second at 13-under 203 (69-66-68). He finished five shots out of first. D'Souza posted three birdies and an eagle on the par 5 2nd hole in the final round. That followed his five-birdie, one-eagle performance in the second round and a seven-birdie first round.
BIG LIN WIN
USC freshman Yuxin Lin overcame a two-shot deficit at the start of the day, let slip a one-stroke advantage on 18, and then bounced back to win a two-hole playoff to capture the 2019 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championships at the Sheshan International Golf Club in Shanghai, China, on Sept. 19.
Lin became just the second two-time winner of the event while earning berths into the 2019 Masters and Open Championships.
Playing on home soil, the Beijing-native birdied the 18th hole twice in a playoff to defeat world No. 1 and defending champion Takumi Kanaya. Lin birdied the first playoff hole from about 10 feet to stay alive and then used a tap-in birdie to win the championship thanks to a magical bunker shot that landed within inches of the cup. Lin began the day two off the lead and finished at 10-under 278 (68-71-71-68), tied with Kanaya. Lin bogeyed 18 to give Kanaya the opportunity in the event's first-ever playoff.
USC OVERVIEW
USC, a three-time winner last year, returns five players from last year's squad in senior Kyle Suppa, juniors Issei Tanabe and Kaito Onishi as well as sophomores Charlie Reiter and Cameron Henry.
The Trojans are tasked with replacing the production of the graduated Justin Suh, the former world amateur No. 1 and also the 2019 Pac-12 Scholar-Athlete of the Year for men's golf. He was a four-time All-American and USC's first back-to-back first team selection (2018-19) since Jamie Lovemark (2007-08). He finished his senior season with a team-best 69.39 average, second-best in program history behind his own record (68.73), earning his third straight All-Pac-12 first team nod. Suh, a 2019 All-Nicklaus Team pick, had seven top-4 finishes in 2019 including two wins.
The Trojans, also without Ryan Slater and Owen Calvin-Smith from last year's roster, figure to be led this year by Onishi, a 2019 PING All-American honorable mention selection who was second on the Trojans in stroke average (71.55) to go with five top 10 finishes. He is not playing this weekend, however.
The 2018 Pac-12 Freshman of the Year and a 2019 All-Pac-12 first teamer had 13 rounds in the 60s as a sophomore. Among his five top 10s were a third at the Fighting Illini Invitational at 3-under 207 (68-69-70) and a tie for third at The Goodwin at 2-under 208 (69-66-73).
Suppa is the lone senior on the squad this year. He started all 13 events last year and finished with a 73.46 stroke average in 37 rounds. He had five 19 finishes and seven rounds under 70. He tied for fourth at 5-under 208 (73-68-67) at the Saint Mary's Invitational – a career-best effort – and tied for seventh at 5-under 211 (70-67-74) at the Golf Club of Georgia Collegiate Invitational.
Tanabe is the only other returning upperclassmen. A 2019 All-Pac-12 honorable mention selection, he was third on the Trojans with a stroke average of 72.42 in 38 rounds, including 12 rounds in the 60s, third-best on the team. He had four top 13 finishes, including a USC career-best second in Troy's come-from behind win at the Saint Mary's Invitational at 8-under 205 (72-68-65).
Reiter, a 2019 Pac-12 All-Freshman honorable mention pick, started eight of USC's events and played in 12 overall with 36 rounds. He had three rounds in the 60s and a stroke average of 71.58 in fall play and finished the season at 73.81. He posted a season-best tie for sixth at the Fighting Illini Invitational at 1-under 209 (72-71-66) and was 23rd at the Nike Golf Collegiate at 4-over 214 (69-72-73).
Henry played in just one tournament as a freshman but made the most of it, tying for fifth at 4-under 206 (66-69-71).
The Trojans welcome three newcomers in junior transfer Leon D'Souza and freshmen Tyler Guo and Yuxin Lin.
Monday, September 16
