Golf can be a crazy sport. Just ask the Arizona Wildcats.
The UA won the Pac-12 Conference title a year ago, but failed to make it past the NCAA Regionals. This year, they finished 11th in the Pac-12 Championships โฆ then won the NCAA Regional in Bryan, Texas, earning a spot in this weekโs 30-team NCAA Championships. Arizona will tee off at 6:30 a.m. Friday in its first NCAA Championships since 2011; the tournament is being held at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale.
โIn golf, thereโs ups and downs, but I think weโre in a good rhythm now,โ said UA sophomore Sam Sommerhauser. โWeโre all playing great golf and weโre super confident. โฆ Itโs going to be a long week, so we just have to stay patient.โ
Friday marks the first NCAA Championships as a head coach for Arizonaโs Jim Anderson. He called the experience โreally cool.โ
โI havenโt really had a chance to soak in anything, because of the outcome we experienced and the fun and joy that came from last week, but now itโs been full preparation mode,โ he said. โWeโre not going to talk about this tournament as something bigger than a round of golf each time.
โWeโre going to deconstruct the championship into one round of golf. โฆ When itโs all said and done, I hope thereโs a reason to reflect and celebrate that success, but right now we got a job to do and weโre just preparing for it.โ
The Wildcats will send Christian Banke, Chase Sienkiewicz, Johnny Walker, Sommerhauser and Chaz Aurilia onto the course on Friday, with Philippines native Aidrac Chan available as a reserve.
Hereโs a look at the golfers who will try to deliver Arizonaโs first golf title since 1992:
Christian Banke
Hometown:Danville, California
Year: Fifth-year senior
Best score this season: 63 (Won the Arizona Intercollegiate)
How he performed last week: Tied for 10th place (-2)
Coachspeak: "Christian Banke has been our senior leader from start to finish. โฆ Heโs assembled a year where heโs going to be talked about for an All-American award. Heโs just that good. I think his best quality is the mindset heโs able to play from. Heโs very composed, very stoic, very professional and heโs aware of how heโs thinking โ both his conscious and subconscious. Because of that, his routine is so good and heโs capable โ in any moment โ of performing at a high level, which weโve seen, and we rely on Christian as much โ if not, more โ as anybody.โ โ Anderson
Chase Sienkiewicz
Hometown: Sacramento, California
Year: Junior
Best score this season: 65
How he performed last week: Tied for second (-6)
Coachspeak: โHeโs got an unbelievable game, especially with his length. Heโs worked really hard honing in other scoring skills. Heโs become a very good wedge player, his putting is really good, heโs learned how to putt with better speed, and heโs the kind of guy who loves the lights on him at the end, so thatโs a good position for us to have. โฆ Weโre looking forward for Chase to keep his confidence rolling.โ โ Anderson
Johnny Walker
Hometown: Chandler
Year: Freshman
Best score this season: 63
How he performed last week: Tied for 17th (even)
Coachspeak: โHeโs a very, very talented golfer and immensely talented as far as off the tee. I think his best quality is his putting. He can go unconscious with his putting. Thatโs his best quality in golf, heโs got some other great qualities as a young man, too. Johnny is able to go unconscious with his putter, which allows him to score and heโs posted some very, very low rounds for us this year.โ โ Anderson
Sam Sommerhauser
Hometown: Rocklin, California
Year: Sophomore
Best score this season: 63
How he performed last week: Tied for 20th (+2)
Coachspeak: โHeโs got the best fundamentals on the team. Heโs a guy who can absolutely put the ball in play off the tee, and has worked really hard on course management and the patience part of that. His best quality comes from boringly beating the golf course, and letting others around make their mistakes to allow his scoring to lead to that. Heโs got zero deficiencies in any part of his game.โ
Chaz Aurilia
Hometown: Phoenix
Year: Junior
Best score this season: 69
How he performed last week: Tied for 29th (+4)
Coachspeak: โChaz Aurilia has really stepped up this last week. Heโs really committed to being a smart player from the tee. โฆ Heโs become very intelligent with his attack of the course, so for Chaz, Iโm really happy that heโs found his game this time of year. โฆ Heโs ready for high-level golf.โ โ Jim Anderson
Aidrac Chan
Hometown: Quezon City, Philippines
Year: Junior
Best score this season: 66
How he performed last week: Did not play
He said it: โHeโs the kind of player who doesnโt need to get into a rhythm to start scoring. We can all go tee it up any course here in Tucson, and he can absolutely shoot 7 or 8 under par. Iโm not trying to forecast thatโs going to happen, because I donโt know how things are going to play out, but A.C. is a young man thatโs got a lot of confidence in his game. โฆ We couldnโt be more excited about the team weโre bringing up to Grayhawk.โ โ Anderson
