Saturday, April 12
Phoenix, Ariz.
All Day
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The ASU Thunderbird Classic
Photo by: John McGillen/USC Athletics
USC Men’s Golf Fires Lowest Team Score in Final Round to Finish Eighth
April 12, 2025 | Men's Golf
Freshman Dumdumaya Leads Trojans with Career Best 65 (-6) in Final Round
PHOENIX – Senior Gavin Aurilia secured his second top-ten finish of the season, tying for ninth place on the leaderboard at seven-under-par. Freshman Jaden Dumdumaya recorded a career low round, as he moved up 23 positions on the leaderboard after posting the lowest round in the field at 65 (-6) on the final day. USC as a squad moved up two spots on the final day after shooting a third round-best team score of 276 (-10), placing it eighth out of ten teams at the ASU Thunderbird on Saturday, Apr. 12, at Papago G.C.
The Trojans combined for a score of 840 (281 + 285 + 274), as they counted only scores below par – 65-69-70-70 – in the final round of play. No. 5 Arizona State won their home event for the third consecutive year.
Aurilia tied his second-lowest 54 hole score (by par) for the season, finishing the regular season finale at seven-under-par. In his final round, the senior recorded his second round in the 60's for the tournament, carding a 69 (-2). Aurilia carded a 67 (-4) in the first round and followed suit with a 70 (-1) in the second. The senior posted four birdies in Round 3, limiting himself to two bogeys. Aurilia finished the tournament with one eagle, 11 birdies and six bogeys across three rounds to finish T9th out of 64 players.
"I'm just proud of the way I hung in there with a good field, I wasn't necessarily hitting the ball great this week but concentrated and just grinded it out," Aurilia said. "My short game was good this week, when I had the chances to make birdies, I made the most of every chance."
Dumdumaya had a career day, as he tied the second-best round of the season from a Trojan at 65 (-6). Dumdumaya's highlight of the round came on his third hole of the day as he followed a bogey with an eagle on a par four (No. 12). After that, the freshman would birdie three more holes and walk out of the tournament as the largest mover of the day, increasing his standing by 23 spots into a tie for 23rd at three-under par total.
"Things felt a lot better today compared to the last two rounds. My short game was probably the best it's been in a while," Dumdumaya said. "On hole No. 12, I was talking with coach, and we were going through the usual stuff, and I was deciding whether to lay up short, and give myself a little pitch shot. My drive put it in the ideal spot, just over the green, and I did a lot of practice on chipping yesterday, so I had a nice little chip, and it just dripped into the hole."
Freshman Jack Buchanan and sophomore Jack Jerge tied for the third score on the day, as they both were one-under par. Buchanan finished one stroke ahead of Jerge, as the freshman was one-over par for the tournament, tying him for 38th and Jerge was two-over par, tying him for 42nd. Buchanan's round consisted of five birdies and four bogeys, while Jerge had three birdies and two bogeys.
Junior Antonio Safa was fifth in the lineup overall and for the day, as he went two-over par and ended his tournament four-over par, tying him for 49th.
Tyler Greenspahn competed individually and finished his tournament at 18-over par after carding an 80 (+9) on the final day. The freshman tied for 62nd in the field.
"Today was a small victory along the way for our team," said Coach Mark Hankins. "Each guy went out and posted a solid score in tougher conditions and it really moved us up the leaderboard. We were the low team round today and shows us what we are capable of when ready to go. Congrats to Jaden and Gavin. Both were dialed in mentally, short games were elite, giving us the fire power to pass a few teams today."
USC will head into the postseason as it takes on the Big Ten Conference Championships starting Friday, Apr. 25 through Sunday, Apr. 27 at the Baltimore C.C. in Baltimore, Md.
For more information on the USC men's golf team, a complete schedule, and results, please visit USCTrojans.com. Fans of the Trojans can follow the team on Instagram and on X @USCMensGolf.
The Trojans combined for a score of 840 (281 + 285 + 274), as they counted only scores below par – 65-69-70-70 – in the final round of play. No. 5 Arizona State won their home event for the third consecutive year.
Aurilia tied his second-lowest 54 hole score (by par) for the season, finishing the regular season finale at seven-under-par. In his final round, the senior recorded his second round in the 60's for the tournament, carding a 69 (-2). Aurilia carded a 67 (-4) in the first round and followed suit with a 70 (-1) in the second. The senior posted four birdies in Round 3, limiting himself to two bogeys. Aurilia finished the tournament with one eagle, 11 birdies and six bogeys across three rounds to finish T9th out of 64 players.
"I'm just proud of the way I hung in there with a good field, I wasn't necessarily hitting the ball great this week but concentrated and just grinded it out," Aurilia said. "My short game was good this week, when I had the chances to make birdies, I made the most of every chance."
Dumdumaya had a career day, as he tied the second-best round of the season from a Trojan at 65 (-6). Dumdumaya's highlight of the round came on his third hole of the day as he followed a bogey with an eagle on a par four (No. 12). After that, the freshman would birdie three more holes and walk out of the tournament as the largest mover of the day, increasing his standing by 23 spots into a tie for 23rd at three-under par total.
"Things felt a lot better today compared to the last two rounds. My short game was probably the best it's been in a while," Dumdumaya said. "On hole No. 12, I was talking with coach, and we were going through the usual stuff, and I was deciding whether to lay up short, and give myself a little pitch shot. My drive put it in the ideal spot, just over the green, and I did a lot of practice on chipping yesterday, so I had a nice little chip, and it just dripped into the hole."
Freshman Jack Buchanan and sophomore Jack Jerge tied for the third score on the day, as they both were one-under par. Buchanan finished one stroke ahead of Jerge, as the freshman was one-over par for the tournament, tying him for 38th and Jerge was two-over par, tying him for 42nd. Buchanan's round consisted of five birdies and four bogeys, while Jerge had three birdies and two bogeys.
Junior Antonio Safa was fifth in the lineup overall and for the day, as he went two-over par and ended his tournament four-over par, tying him for 49th.
Tyler Greenspahn competed individually and finished his tournament at 18-over par after carding an 80 (+9) on the final day. The freshman tied for 62nd in the field.
"Today was a small victory along the way for our team," said Coach Mark Hankins. "Each guy went out and posted a solid score in tougher conditions and it really moved us up the leaderboard. We were the low team round today and shows us what we are capable of when ready to go. Congrats to Jaden and Gavin. Both were dialed in mentally, short games were elite, giving us the fire power to pass a few teams today."
USC will head into the postseason as it takes on the Big Ten Conference Championships starting Friday, Apr. 25 through Sunday, Apr. 27 at the Baltimore C.C. in Baltimore, Md.
For more information on the USC men's golf team, a complete schedule, and results, please visit USCTrojans.com. Fans of the Trojans can follow the team on Instagram and on X @USCMensGolf.
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