After a dramatic day filled with hopes and nerves, the Stanford men’s golf team took third place with a team score of 890 in the Ashworth Collegiate Invitational in Westlake Village, Calif. The Cardinal fell by only five strokes to tournament champion No. 8 Southern California; it was only one stroke behind second place No. 10 Tennessee.

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Freshman Sihwan Kim closed strongly and rallied to a third place finish in the Ashworth Collegiate Invitational yesterday. Kim and junior Dodge Kemmer finished the tournament seven-over-par to lead the team.

“We really had a chance to win,” said head coach Conrad Ray. “The tournament was decided by the nine holes, but we just did OK coming down the stretch. We had a few bogeys and it was tough, but all in all it was a good tournament for us. [Junior] Dodge [Kemmer] and [freshman] Sihwan [Kim] had a good week and USC had a top-notch performance, so hats off to them.”

Due to windy conditions, many teams had trouble controlling the ball, contributing to a high scoring trend in the first round. Stanford checked in at second place with a 21-over 305 after the first half of the day, trailing Southern California by 21 strokes. Weather conditions calmed for the second round but the Cardinal dropped to fourth overall, scoring a 13-over 297. The first two rounds of the tournament on Monday exhibited fairly mild competition. USC adhered to expectations by managing a strong performance to put the Trojans 11 strokes ahead of the Cardinal going into yesterday’s final round.

Little did the Trojans know that both Stanford and Tennessee would give them a run for their money in the final round. Southern California came in with a 10-over 294 for the day while the Cardinal posted a four-over score of 288. Tennessee checked in with a one-over 285 to squeak by Stanford in the closing moments of tournament.

“The second day presented better weather conditions, which made the course more available for scoring,” coach Ray said. “It was great to see the whole team scoring well in the final round. This is the type of course where if you hit it well, you can get a good score. You just have to hit the right spots.”

The Cardinal was led by Kim and Kemmer. Kemmer finished in third place for the tournament, while Kim tied for fourth. The final holes of the tournament were filled with high pressure and excitement as both Kim and Kemmer concluded the final round at a seven-over-par 220, only two strokes behind the individual tournament winner, Tim Sluiter of USC.

Kim had a tough first round, posting a seven-over 78 but improved in the second round with a two-under 69. He concluded the tournament with a two-over score of 73, for a total of 220 for the tournament. Kemmer began the tournament strong with a one-over 71 but lost his groove in the second round, posting a seven-over 78. He gained momentum in the third round, compiling four birdies in the last 11 holes to finish with a one-under score of 70, for a total of 219.

Senior Rob Grube steadily progressed throughout the tournament coming back from a tie for 27th place after the first day of competition to finish in a tie for 20th. Grube posted a six-over-par 77 and a five-over-par 76 on Monday. He posted six bogeys and four birdies in the final round for a two-over 73, and a total of 226 for the tournament.

Junior Daniel Lim and freshman Steven Ziegler, who entered the tournament individually, concluded the tournament in a tie for 25th with 227. Lim posted scores of 81, 74 and 72 respectively, which helped him jump 18 spots from a tie for 43rd after the first day of the competition. Ziegler jumped 42 spots from 67th place after the first day. He earned scores of 82, 77 and 68 throughout the tournament.

“We have a good young team,” coach Ray said. “Steve and Sihwan played really well this week. Steve has a lot of talent and is getting better every time out. Unfortunately, Steve has a high ball flight and the windy conditions on the first day deterred his game.”

Rounding out the Cardinal team score was sophomore Jordan Cox who concluded the tournament in a tie for 64th. Cox posted scores of 78 and 80 for the first two rounds and wrapped up the tournament with an eight-over 79.

The Cardinal will now take a break for finals, but will return to action on Monday, Mar. 24 to compete in the United States Collegiate Championship in Alpharetta, Ga.

“It should be a good trip,” Ray said. “I think the guys will get some rest, get into their exams and polish up their game for the spring break trip. This has come to be known as one of the premier college events in the country. The nickname for tournament has developed into ‘The Masters of College Golf.’

“We are looking forward to the competition and the guys are excited about the way they are playing, so I think that we have as good of a chance as anyone to win it.”