Ducks Battle Elements, Finish Ninth at NCAA Columbus Regional

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Oregon's season came to an end Wednesday at the NCAA Columbus Regional, where the Ducks finished ninth after battling difficult weather conditions during the tournament's final round.

Play was delayed 4 1/2 hours by rain, leading to a shotgun start, and course conditions suffered throughout the day as a result. No team in the field finished the round under par, and only four of 75 players carded rounds of 1-under.

The Ducks entered the final round six shots outside the projected cut line for the top five advancing teams. As conditions continued to impact scoring, the cut line shifted from 20-over to 31-over by the end of the day while the battle for the fifth and final qualifying spot shifted repeatedly throughout the round.

Florida, the No. 2 national seed, led wire-to-wire and won the regional by 24 strokes. Luke Poulter earned medalist honors for the Gators at even par, while UF also placed two golfers tied for second, another tied for 10th and its non-scoring golfer tied for 11th.

Stanford finished second at 24-over, followed by Memphis, Arizona State and Florida State to round out the five advancing teams.

"It was a tough event and tough finish for us. The conditions were brutal," head coach Casey Martin said. "My guys gave it all they had. At the end of the day, we didn't make enough putts. I am very grateful for the effort they showed."

How it Happened

Oregon's final round began with an early setback. The Ducks combined to shoot 9-over through their opening four holes, quickly losing the ground they made up during Tuesday's second round. Ramil Saelim and Casper Nerpin opened on Hole 5, while Aiden Krafft and Tim Chang started on Holes 4 and 6, respectively.

Krafft carded a 4-over round and fell out of the top 30 after opening the day with two bogeys and a double bogey across his first seven holes. The senior steadied himself on the back half of the round, playing his final 10 holes bogey-free to finish tied for 23rd. He capped a consistent spring season with top-30 finishes in every event.

Paired together in the final round, Saelim and Nerpin led Oregon's efforts as both moved up the leaderboard in tough conditions. Nerpin opened with an even-par through his first nine before a three-over in the second half of his day left him tied for 27th, his best finish in his last four starts.

Saelim made a late charge up the leaderboard, collecting birdies in each of his final three holes to finish the tournament at 6-over par, just outside the top 10 and as Oregon's top finisher.

Chang rounded out the Ducks' scoring lineup in the final round with an 8-over performance.

Duck Scorecard
NCAA Columbus Regional
OSU Golf Club – Par 71 (7,422 yards)
9. Oregon – 300-294-298 (+41)
T11. Ramil Saelim – 75-73-71 – 219 (+6)
T23. Aiden Krafft – 74-73-75 – 222 (+9)
T27. Casper Nerpin – 76-73-74 – 223 (+10)
T41. Tim Chang – 75-75-79 – 229 (+16)
T71. Sebastian Desoisa – 79-80-79 – 238 (+25)

Regional Scoreboard
1. Florida (E)
2. Stanford (+24)
3. Memphis (+25)
4. Arizona State (+30)
5. Florida State (+31)
— Top 5 Championship Cut —
6. Utah (+37)
7. Long Beach State (+38)
8. Cal (+39)
9. Oregon (+41)
T10. Illinois State (+43)
T10. USF (+43)
12. South Carolina (+48)
13. Wright State (+58)

Notable

Krafft closes his Oregon career with a 71.89 scoring average, the seventh-best mark in program history ... He also finishes eighth all-time with 417 career birdies and tied for ninth in program history with two career victories.