Heading into the summer after the program’s best-ever finish, Oregon has a busy schedule ahead of itself to meet ever-increasing expectations.
Last season, Oregon finished third at the NCAA Championships, losing to Oklahoma State in match play. Though it was difficult for head coach Casey Martin to be mad about the overall result, Martin said he thought the Ducks left a few holes on the course.
“We didn’t play our very best, and when you don’t against a program like Oklahoma State, it’s hard to win. It will bring us back hungry for next year,” Martin said.
And the Ducks don’t get much of a summer break, either. Most of the team will be playing various amateur golf tournaments on the West Coast. One of those events is the Oregon Amateur Championship at Willamette Valley Country Club in Canby from June 21-26.
The amateur uses stroke play to narrow the field to 64, and then uses match play for the rest of the tournament to crown an eventual champion.
Andrew Vijarro, Jack Dukeminer, Jack Paton, Tyler Parker, Robbie Ziegler, Isaiah Telles and Jack Pennington all entered the tournament, and some actually faced each other in match play. Paton, a redshirt sophomore, had a strong showing, advancing to the final round in match play before losing to former Oregon State golfer Paul Peterson to finish
second. Vijarro won medalist honors for finishing first in stroke play, but only managed to make it to the round of 16. Ziegler eliminated Parker in the round of 32 before being ousted in the round of 16. Dukeminier also reached the round of 16 only to be eliminated by teammate Telles. Pennington was the only Duck to not reach match play.
There are still several amateurs to go, including the Pacific Coast Amateur at Eugene Country Club. Martin is hoping several Ducks will qualify for the U.S. Amateur Championship in August, which ends the summer season for Oregon.
Looking to next season, the Ducks should be in fantastic shape. The team did not lose anyone to graduation, and will carry Dukeminier, Telles and Sean Maekawa as the three seniors on next year’s roster. Dukeminier and Telles are consistent contributors, as Telles carded a monster 5-under 67 in the NCAA Regionals to finish tied for third overall, while
Maekawa seemed to struggle at times. He did not compete in the last six tournaments of the season for the Ducks.
Though the seniors should have a say in the team’s direction, the two best players are clearly Eugene Wong and Daniel Miernicki, who will both be juniors next year. As long as the two are in Eugene, the Ducks should be in contention for a national championship.
Last season, Wong was presented the Jack Nicklaus Award, which is awarded to the best golfer in Division I. He was also named to the Nicklaus team, which is included as the winner of that award, and first-team Ping All-American. Miernicki was named second-team Ping All-American.
Martin was excited that Wong earned the Nicklaus award, noting he is in select company.
“What more can you say about that? His name is next to Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, some of the great players of the game,” Martin said.
Miernicki was selected to play in the Palmer Cup last weekend, a tournament between top American and European golfers, where he won the tournament’s first match, 5 and 3, spearheading an American victory.
The rocks of Oregon’s team will also be playing in PGA Tour events. Wong will be playing in the Canadian Open and Daniel Miernicki will be playing in the Reno-Tahoe Open, thanks to sponsors exemptions for winning regular-season tournaments.
“It will put them in a position to have a great career in golf,” Martin said.
Another goal, Martin said, is mentally adjusting the Ducks’ mindset. They must get used to being the frontrunner. Competing as an underdog is much easier than being the team to beat, and Oregon will have to manage expectations to succeed in the upcoming season.
“Certainly, our goals have escalated. We will face more pressure this year than in previous years,” Martin said.
For Martin and the Ducks, the only acceptable result is a national championship.
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