Men’s golf took the NCAA Championships by storm last weekend in Williamsburg, Va. when the team won its first national title in 13 years. The Cardinal achieved its season-long goal after carrying the lead for the duration of the tournament, firing a four-round, 11-under-par 1,109 (275-278-275-281).

Enlarge
#gallery http://daily.stanford.edu/image/full/7653
Alvin Chow

Junior Rob Grube led the Cardinal to the NCAA crown with a third-place individual finish on a six-under-par 274. In earlier rounds, Grube held the top spot twice.

“Winning the championship was a dream come true,” said head coach Conrad Ray, who himself was a member of Stanford’s 1994 championship team. “From the minute we stepped on course, everything worked out how it had to and we have had the perfect week. The feeling is hard to put into words because we have worked so hard this season for this single goal and achieved it.”

Stanford not only brought its eighth NCAA Championship trophy back to the Farm — the first since before Tiger Woods’ time with the Cardinal — but also was the only team from the top 36 nationally to finish the championship under par. The Cardinal men’s consistently outstanding performances in each round helped them to demolish their competition’s chances, as Stanford eventually built a 12-stroke lead over second-place Georgia (1,121).

“Winning was crazy,” junior Rob Grube said. “By the 15th hole, I knew that we had locked it up. It’s a great feeling walking down 18th fairway with coach, knowing that we won the team title. It’s pretty gratifying to see the team waiting for me to finish so that we could hoist the trophy.”

Months of hard work all culminated for the Cardinal in one wild run to the finish.

“Back in September, we were already working really hard to achieve one thing, to play well during four days in June,” Grube said. “Now, nine months later, our dream was realized by winning the tournament. Unfortunately, we all had to run to the airport right after the tournament, but we held the trophy high all the way through the airport.”

Rounding out the 10 top-team finishes behind Stanford and the Bulldogs were Lamar University and Charlotte (1125; five over par), Coastal Carolina (1128; eight over par), Alabama (1,129; nine over par), UCLA (1,130; 10 over par), Georgia Tech (1,131; 11 over par), and Minnesota and Florida (1,133; 13 over par).

Grube led the Cardinal throughout the championship, helping to solidify Stanford’s commanding victory with his own third-place finish on a six-under-par 274. Grube held the top spot twice thanks to his top-notch play and rained 18 birdies over the four most competitive rounds of golf this season.

“My primary concern was for us to win team championship,” Grube said. “Obviously, there was some synergy with winning the second runner-up for individual crown. Any disappointment over not winning the individual was completely overshadowed by the team victory.”

Grube was in a tie for first with Clemson freshman Kyle Stanley going into the fourth round, but Southern California freshman Jamie Lovemark came back from a tie for 11th to win the tournament. Lovemark blitzed the course during the third and fourth rounds with matching scores of 64, helping him to earn his final, nine-under 271. Stanley shot a one-under 69 in the fourth round, putting him ahead of Grube by just one stroke.

Senior Zack Miller and sophomore Daniel Lim also put forth fierce performances for the Cardinal as both fired a one-under 279 to finish in a tie for 15th. Miller’s best play came in the third round when he notched four birdies and his best single-round score of 67 (three under par). Lim stayed consistent, scoring a one-under 69 in the first, third and fourth rounds.

In his first NCAA Championship, freshman Joseph Bramlett jumped up 18 spots in the individual standings during the fourth round of play, wrapping up the tournament in a tie for 39th with a score of 285 (five over par). Bramlett sank five birdies in the final round for a one-under-par 69. In addition, Bramlett was named to the NCAA Division I All-Freshman team in recognition of his performance at the NCAA Championship and during the season.

Rounding out the individual performances in Stanford’s final, triumphant victory was senior Matt Savage, who took 64th in his final NCAA Championships with a score of 292 (12 over par).

“I think that people will be impressed with our finish as a team,” Ray said. “Rob has been working his tail off all year and capped off this season with an awesome finish. Then there are players like Matt Savage who really fought hard and had some solid rounds. Winning this championship truly was a team effort — our biggest strength all year was having five guys who all contributed, which has worked out well for nationals.”

With seven team tournament victories, including the NCAA crown, and four individual victories from Bramlett, Grube and Miller, the Cardinal wrapped up a truly fantastic season. Savage, Miller, Grube and Bramlett are all listed on Stanford’s season-low stroke average list, and the four — as well as Lim — have been honored with all-conference accolades.

After leading his team to victory, Ray was named the recipient of the Eaton Golf Pride Dave Williams Award, and became just the second national coach of the year in the Stanford golf program’s history. Ray has been on the job as Stanford’s head coach since 2004 and was also named as the Pacific Region and Pacific-10 Conference Coach of the Year.

“Everything is a huge honor,” Ray said. “Winning the NCAA Championship and Coach of the Year is so difficult. I am happy that things have worked out for us because there are so many great programs and variables that go into winning those awards. We have made some special memories that we will carry with us forever. We are elated to represent Stanford and prove to the nation that we can achieve athletic and academic greatness.”