John A. Burns Intercollegiate
Dates: Feb. 20-22 (Thursday-Saturday)
Time: 8 a.m. (HT) / 10 a.m. (PT)
Location: Wailua Golf Course - Lihue, Kaua'i
Par/Yardage: Par 72 - 6,991 yards
Live Scoring: Golfstat.com

Notes (PDF)

IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine men's golf team travels to Lihue, Kaua'i, this week for the John A. Burns Intercollegiate, Feb. 20-22. The 54-hole tournament will be held at the par-72, 6,991-yard Wailua Golf Course. One round is slated for each day with an 8 a.m. (HT)/10 a.m. (PT) shotgun start.
 
The Anteaters are part of a tough 21-team field that features four programs in the top-15 of the Golfstat Rankings released on Feb. 11, including No. 6 Arizona, No. 10 Texas A&M, No. 14 North Carolina and No. 15 BYU. Also in the tournament are No. 28 Cal, No. 40 New Mexico, No. 43 Illinois, No. 57 Utah, No. 58 Long Beach State, No. 64 Saint Mary's, No. 67 Cal State Fullerton, No. 78 UNLV, Grand Canyon, UNC Wilmington, Northern Colorado, Santa Clara, UTEP, Virginia, Washington State and host Hawai'i.
 
UCI's 5-count-4 lineup is comprised of Jonathan Kang, Ramiz Jamal, Chris Casey, Anthony Truong and Parker Lestz.

STORYLINES
• This is the third year in a row UC Irvine will compete in the John A. Burns Intercollegiate.
• The Anteaters are coming off a top-five showing at the 17-team Orange County Collegiate Classic (Feb. 10-11).
• At the OC Collegiate Classic, UCI went up against several opponents that will also be traveling to Hawaii this week.
• Last week, the 'Eaters tied for fourth with Santa Clara, while finishing behind Cal State Fullerton (T1st) and GCU (3rd).
• Senior Jonathan Kang is tops on the team with a 72.58 stroke average.
• Kang has finished at or below par in six of 12 rounds played with two sub-70 scores.
• He jumped 30 spots in the standings over the final two rounds of the OC Collegiate Classic to tie for sixth.
• Senior Ramiz Jamal ranks second on the squad with a 72.92 average.
• Jamal shot a season-best 68 at the Nick Watney Invitational on Sept. 30.
• UC Irvine has a veteran squad with eight letterwinners returning, including all five starters from 2018-19.
• Nearly half of the roster is comprised of seniors (4), all of whom were part of last year's Big West runner-up squad.
• Jamal and Kang also played a key role in the Anteaters' 2018 Big West title.
 
OTHER NEWS & NOTES
• Sophomore Parker Lestz has competed in every tournament this year with a stroke average of 75.75.
• Sophomore Nathan Irwin saw his first action of the season playing as UCI's No. 5 at the OC Collegiate Classic.
• Sophomore transfer Trueman Park is the Anteaters' lone newcomer. He played at Little Rock in 2017-18.
• Park was the 2015 Division I State Champion at Hamilton High School in Chandler, Arizona.
• Ramiz Jamal earned second-team All-Big West honors in 2018-19.
• Jamal led the 'Eaters with a career-best 72.84 scoring average, a two-stroke improvement from 2017-18.
• He had 10 rounds at or below par with 75 birdies and two eagles, one of which was his first collegiate hole-in-one.
• Senior Anthony Truong made an immediate impact as a 2018-19 junior transfer from Arizona State.
• Truong garnered All-Big West honorable mention recognition after placing fourth at the conference championships.
• Jonathan Kang recorded his second-straight top-10 finish at the 2019 Big West Championships as he tied for eighth.
• Matt Gunson led all freshmen at last year's conference tournament where he tied for 10th.
• Gunson played in eight of UC Irvine's 10 tournaments in 2018-19, finishing with a 74.38 scoring average.
• Senior Chris Casey had a 75.00 average in his first season at Irvine after transferring from Orange Coast College.
 
UP NEXT
• The 'Eaters will have a week off before heading north for the Sacramento State Invitational, March 2-3.