The California men’s golf team pulled away from the field with a third-round, 12-under-par 276 to win the 2022 Alister Mackenzie Invitational by 13 strokes on Tuesday at Sonoma Golf Club.
Cal’s victory marked the 12th time that the Golden Bears have won or shared the team title in the Alister Mackenzie Invitational’s 18-year history. It was the Bears’ first win at the Alister Mackenzie Invitational since 2017, and their first overall tournament victory since February 2019 at The Farms Invitational in Rancho Santa Fe, California.
The Bears (282-285-276 – 843, -21), who entered Tuesday in second place and one shot behind 36-hole leader Harvard, were hot out of the gates following an hour-and-a-half fog delay, collectively shooting 5-under-par through the first five holes. The quick start helped Cal build a five-stroke advantage that it built upon throughout the round on the way to a season-best and tournament-low 276 on Tuesday.
For the third time in as many stroke-play events this fall it was Sampson Zheng (68-72-66 – 206, -10) who paced the Bears in Sonoma. The junior saved his best for last, tying his collegiate-low score of 66 (-6) in the third round to finish in sole possession of second place and help Cal run away with the team title. Far from a one-man show, Cal received further standout efforts from Tony Chen (-5, 67) and Nathan Wang (-3, 69) in the third round. Wang and Chen finished tied for sixth and eighth, respectively.
Jeewon Park (74-67-70 – 211, -5) and Simon Kwon (69-73-70 – 212, -4) tied for eighth and 10th while playing as individuals, rounding out a group of five Bears who placed inside the top 10. Fellow individual Costas Panay added a 4-under-par 68 in the third round on the way to a tie for 27th overall.
Runner-up team honors went to Minnesota (279-289-288 – 856, -8) while San José State (288-280-290 – 858, -6) took third place. Long Beach State’s Ian Gilligan (70-66-65 – 201, -15) won individual medalist honors, besting Zheng by five strokes overall.
Tuesday’s playing format was changed to a shotgun start due to the 1.5-hour fog delay.