Brian Hollenbeck shot a 6-over par 222 to finish tied for eighth, helping UCSB to a fourth-place finish at the 2010 Big West Golf Championship at the Mission Viejo Country Club in Mission Viejo on Tuesday. The Gauchos scored an 897 as a team.
The runaway winner of the tournament was UC Irvine which carded an 873, 17 shots ahead of Pacific, 22 ahead of third-place Long Beach State, and 24 in front of UCSB.
Hollenbeck saved his best for last. After shooting 74 and 75 in the first and second rounds respectively, the senior shot a 1-over par 73 in the final round. He finished one shot ahead of teammate Russell Boring, who logged a 223 and tied for 11th. Andrew Gunson, who was at even-par after two rounds, struggled in the third round with an 82. He finished at 226 and in a tie for 20th-place.
Tyler Sterk (227, tied for 22nd-place) and Tyler Weir (240, tied for 39th-place) rounded out Santa Barbara’s field.
UC Irvine was led by the individual winner, John Chin, who completed the 54 holes with a 7-under par 209, nine shots ahead of Pacific’s T.J. Bordeaux and Cal Poly’s Pace Johnson.
UCSB’s fourth-place finish as a team was an improvement of five spots from 2009. The Gauchos were six shots better than Cal State Northridge, the fifth-place team.
In addition, Santa Barbara finished 28 shots in front of the eighth-place Cal Poly, and thus earn a point in its Blue-Green Rivalry Series with the Mustangs. UCSB now leads in the series by a count of 11-9 with only the men’s and women’s track and field championship remaining.
