California junior Sampson Zheng was named the Pac-12 Men’s Golfer of the Week by the league office on Tuesday following his record-setting performance at the 46th annual John A. Burns Intercollegiate in Hawaii on Feb. 16-17.
Zheng won co-medalist honors at the two-day, 54-hole tournament by shooting a school-record 18-under par (65-68-65 – 198). His 18-under in relation to par is also tied for the third lowest in Pac-12 history. The junior shot a personal collegiate-low 65 in the first and third rounds, the latter of which was highlighted by three birdies and an eagle over the final six holes as he roared back for a share of the individual title.
It was Zheng’s first collegiate victory and helped the Bears earn a fourth-place finish on the team leaderboard.
Cal has now had an individual medalist at the Burns Intercollegiate in back-to-back years – fellow junior Aaron Du won the title outright in 2022 – and six times overall, tied with New Mexico for the most all-time individual crowns at the tournament.
Zheng has been superb in five stroke-play events during the 2022-23 season, averaging 69.53 strokes per round with eight rounds in the ’60s. He has finished in the top-19 individually in all five events and has twice earned top-two finishes.
The Cal standout and the Bears will be back in action on March 6-7 at the San Diego Classic at the San Diego Country Club.