Photo credit – Beth Hall
The California men’s golf team will wrap up its 2022 fall schedule in the Sunshine State at the Isleworth Collegiate, co-hosted by Central Florida and West Virginia at Isleworth Golf & Country Club on Oct. 23-25.
Less than two weeks removed from winning the Alister Mackenzie Invitational – Cal’s first team victory since spring 2019 – at Sonoma Golf Club, the Golden Bears will face off with 14 of the nation’s top programs at the Isleworth Collegiate in Windermere. The three-day, 54-hole event is consistently recognized as one of the premier collegiate golf tournaments in the country. Formerly known as the Tavistock Collegiate Invitational, the Isleworth Collegiate was founded in 2003. Cal previously won the tournament in 2012 and 2017 and has participated in the event every year since 2011, other than 2020 when it was not held due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Bears will be without familiar faces Sampson Zheng (68.66 stroke average) and Aaron Du (74.00 stroke average), who are both competing in the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship in Thailand on Oct. 27-30, but the Cal lineup will feature four golfers that finished 10th individually or better at the Alister Mackenzie Invitational.
TOURNAMENT INFO
- Dates: Oct. 23-25
- Format: 18-18-18 (Sunday-Monday-Tuesday)
- Location: Isleworth Golf & Country Club (Windermere, Florida)
- Course Info: Par 72, 7,544 Yards
- Live Scoring: Golfstat.com
OFF THE TEE
1. Jeewon Park
2. Tony Chen
3. Nathan Wang
4. Simon Kwon
5. Ethan Chung
THE FIELD (15)
Arizona, Auburn, Augusta, Cal, Central Florida (co-host), Florida, Illinois, LSU, Minnesota, North Florida, Purdue, South Carolina, UNLV, Utah, West Virginia (co-host)
GOLDEN BEAR LINEUP
1 – Jeewon Park (Jr., Busan, South Korea)
2022-23: 73.44 stroke average … 3 events & 9 rounds played … Tied for 8th as an individual (74-67-70 – 211, -5) at the Alister Mackenzie Invitational (Oct. 10-11) … Second-round 67 at the Mackenzie was a collegiate low … Shot 22+ (79-85-74 – 238) to tie for 54th at the Blessings Collegiate Invitational (Oct. 3-5) … Tied for 37th with a 2-over 212 (70-72-70) at the Fighting Irish Classic (Sept. 4-5) in his Cal debut … Lost 3&2 alongside Adora Liu as the No. 6 pairing in the Big Match vs. Stanford (Sept. 29) … Career: Arizona State transfer who arrived in Berkeley after two seasons played with the Sun Devils … Played in two stroke-play events in 2021-22 with the Sun Devils, including at the Dove Mountain Intercollegiate where he tied for fourth (82-70-70 – 222, +6) … Three-time Korean National Team player in 2014, ’16 and ’17.
2 – Tony Chen (R-So., Shenzhen, China)
2022-23: 70.33 stroke average … 2 events & 6 rounds played … Earned his best individual collegiate finish with a tie for 8th (73-71-67 – 211, -5) to help lead Cal to a team victory at the Alister Mackenzie Invitational (Oct. 10-11) … Tied for 47th (80-74-79 – 233, +17) in his first stroke-play tournament of the season at the Blessings Collegiate Invitational (Oct. 3-5) … Played alongside Cal women’s team’s Mika Jin in the Big Match (Sept. 29), falling 4&2 to Stanford’s Karl Vilips & Rachel Heck … Career: Averaged 73.25 strokes per round in his first season of action in 2021-22 … Tallied seven rounds in the 60s, including a season-low 67 in the fourth round of the Pac-12 Championships … Tied for 18th at Pac-12s, shooting 75-69-76-67 – 287, +3).
3 – Nathan Wang (Fr., Fremont, California)
2022-23: 73.83 stroke average … 2 events & 6 rounds played … Impressed with a 6-under-par 210 (70-71-69) as he tied for sixth individually & helped lead Cal to the Alister Mackenzie Invitational (Oct. 10-11) title … Played in first stroke-play event of the season at Blessings Collegiate Invitational, tying for 47th (76-79-78 – 233, +17) … Made his Cal debut in last week’s Big Match vs. Stanford; lost a match (5&4) alongside the Golden Bear women’s Annika Borrelli … Won medalist honors at 2022 NCGA Amateur Stroke Play Championship (71-70-71 – 212, -1); was the only golfer in the 87-player field to play the 54-hole event under par & is believed to be only the second 17-year-old to win the event with the only other golf legend Johnny Miller in 1964.
4 – Simon Kwon (So., Salt Lake City, Utah)
2022-23: 70.66 stroke average … 1 event & 3 rounds played … Impressed in his season debut, tying for 10th as an individual with a 4-under-par 212 (69-73-70) … Career: Immediately impacted the Bears as a freshman last season, playing in seven stroke-play tournaments … Averaged 73.45 strokes per round … Tied for eighth at the John A. Burns Intercollegiate in Hawaii after carding a six-under 210, which included a season-low 65 in the first round (65-72-73 – 210, -6).
5 – Ethan Chung (R-So., Eastvale, California)
2022-23: 72.33 stroke average … 2 events & 6 rounds played … Placed 19th individually (71-72-74 – 217, +1) to help Cal win the Alister Mackenzie Invitational (Oct. 10-11) … Cracked Cal’s lineup & tied for 60th (+8. 71-74-73 – 218) at the season-opening Fighting Irish Classic (Sept. 4-5) … Career: Competed in nine tournaments (28 rounds) and averaged 73 strokes per round in his first season with the Bears during 2021-22 … Transferred to Cal after redshirting during his freshman year at USC … Shot in the 60s in six rounds during 2021-22, including a first-round 69 at the Pac-12 Championship … Tied for eighth at the 2022 Tim Tierney Pioneer Shootout as an individual after shooting a five-under 211 (71-68-72).