LIVERMORE, Calif. – The Western Washington University men’s golf team finished the first round of the Bay Area Invitational in 5th place before the second round was suspended due to inclement weather and lightning in the spring-opening tournament for the Vikings at The Course at Wente Vineyards.
The two-day, 54-hole tournament is being co-hosted by Academy of Art University and Holy Names University at the par 72, 6,695-yard Greg Norman designed layout.
WWU completed the first 18 holes with a 26-over-par 314, good for 5th place in the 16-team field. Through the first round WWU was just 9 shots back of tournament leader Dixie State at 17-over-par 305.
“This course is a true test even on a calm day, but hard rain and very tough wind today made it even tougher,” said head coach Luke Bennett. “It was a grind all day for the guys.”
Sophomore Ethan Casto (Snohomish, WA) and junior Michael Butler (Sammamish, WA/Skyline) were tied for 9th place in the 83-player field through the first round, with junior Cody Roth (Bellingham, WA) tied for 20th at 6-over-par 78.
With 14 holes completed in the second round, Casto is at 1-under-par for the round and 3-over-par for the tournament.
“Ethan is showing great control and confidence in his game,” added Bennett. “He has put a lot of work in with assistant coach Craig Welty and has turned his putting into a strength. It’s great to see out of him.”
Second-round play will resume starting at 7:45 am Tuesday morning, followed immediately by the third round without the field being re-paired.
You can follow the tournament via live results at Golfstat.com.