Brigham Young University men's golf team hosts the 39th annual Taylor Made/Adidas Cougar Classic on Friday-Saturday April 20-21 at Riverside Country Club in Provo, Utah.
Last year BYU made history as the Cougars shot a record 43-under par (273-273-275--821) to claim the Championship. BYU was 22 strokes under the previous record of 843 set in 1973 and defeated second-place New Mexico by 24 strokes. From 1979 to 1992 five scores were counted instead of the current format of counting four scores.Individually Andy Miller shot a final round 63 to outplay teammate Manuel Merizalde to shoot a tournament record 69-69-63--201 finishing a stroke in front of Merizalde 66-66-70--202.
This year 16 teams will challenge for the Cougar Classic crown including No. 12 BYU, No. 35 San Diego State, No. 38 Tulsa, and No. 46 Nevada. Local teams Utah, Utah State, Weber State and Southern Utah also join the field. BYU is currently the top ranked team in the Mountain West Conference ahead of No. 13 New Mexico and No. 28 UNLV.
The No. 12 Cougars are coming off a respectable seventh place finish at the Thunderbird/Savanne Invitational last weekend where the Cougars shot a first round 14-under par 274 and finished 9-under par. Red-hot Scott Miller led the Cougars shooting 68-72-68--208 to finish third individually. Miller was named Mountain West Conference Golfer of the Week for his outstanding weekend. For Miller this will be his fourth and final Cougar Classic along with fellow seniors Billy Harvey and Jesse Hibler. He finished third at last year's Cougar Classic behind Merizalde and brother Andy. Miller is the second highest ranked individual on the BYU team according to the MasterCard Collegiate Rankings. Currently he ranks No. 36 in the nation behind Merizalde at No. 35. Teammate Harvey currently ranks 89th nationally.
2001 COUGAR CLASSIC QUICK FACTS
Date: April 20-21 (Friday & Saturday)
Rounds: Three-rounds (54 holes); 36 holes on Friday (shotgun start), 18 holes on Saturday 1st and 10th tees
Tee Times: 8 a.m. shotgun on Friday, 8 a.m. third round start on Saturday 1st and 10th tees (all times Mountain Standard Time)
Course: Riverside Country Club
Par: 72
Yardage: 6,950
2000 Champion: Brigham Young University (273-273-275-821)
Defending Individual Champion: Andy Miller (67-67-63--201)
Tournament Director: : Bruce Brockbank, Brigham Young University's head men's golf coach
TOURNAMENT Field (16 Teams): BYU, Colorado State, Boise State, Air Force, Fresno State, Hawaii, San Diego State, Utah State, Southern Utah, Tulsa, Utah, UTEP, Nevada, UC Santa Barbara, Weber State, Wyoming
TOURNAMENT FORMAT: Best four of six scores counted on a daily basis. In case of tie, we will use the fifth score of the team, if continues, will use the sixth.
Results: Official results will be sent via fax to each schools SID office after each round and will also be made available as soon as possible on our website: www.byucougars.com If you are receiving this fax, you will receive faxed results of the tournament.
Media Contact: Call Dave Broberg at the BYU Media Relations Office (801) 378-4907, or email:david_broberg@byu.edu with any requests. During the Tournament you can reach Dave on his cel phone at (801) 372-0704
Updates: Visit www.byucougars.com for the most current results.