at Visit Stockton Invitational
Dates: Oct. 20-22 (Thursday-Saturday)
Location: Stockton Golf & Country Club - Stockton, Calif.
Live Scoring: Golfstat.com

IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine men's golf team makes its way to the Central Valley this week for the Visit Stockton Invitational hosted by the University of the Pacific, Oct. 20-22.
 
The three-day tournament will be contested at the Stockton Golf & Country Club. Eighteen holes will be played on Thursday, Friday and Saturday with tee times starting at 7:45 a.m.
 
The Anteaters are part of a 16-team field that also features Cal State Fullerton, CSUN, Fresno State, George Washington, Grand Canyon, Idaho, Sacramento State, San José State, Temple, UC Riverside, UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, Utah Tech, Washington State and host Pacific.
 
UCI's 5-count-4 lineup includes Darien Zhao, Kolbe Irei, Rei Harashima, Jin Nakao and Andy Zou.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Junior Darien Zhao tied for first to lead UC Irvine to a third-place team finish at the Bill Cullum Invitational, Oct. 10-11. Zhao came in at 6-under 210 (68-70-72) to sit atop the leaderboard alongside host CSUN's Felix Schrott. Schrott then won a one-hole playoff to claim individual medalist honors. Zhao led all players with 16 birdies through three rounds. Junior Kolbe Irei registered his second top-20 finish of the young season, placing 13th overall at 1-under 215 (71-72-72). Freshman Rei Harashima also had a top-15 showing at even-par 216 (69-68-79). Redshirt freshman Jin Nakao tied for 39th (224), while freshman Andy Zou rounded out UCI's 5-count-4 lineup in a tie for 42nd (225). Two 'Eaters competed as individuals with sophomore Kevin McGough tying for 31st (222) and sophomore Johnny Bai tying for 42nd (225). It was McGough's Anteater debut and the season debut for Bai.
 
NEWS & NOTES
• The 'Eaters are traveling the same 5-count-4 lineup they used in the first two tournaments of the season.
• They placed among the top-six and finished under par at both the Nick Watney (6th) and Bill Cullum (3rd) Invites.
• Four Anteaters have combined for seven sub-70 scores through six rounds.
• Darien Zhao leads the way with three rounds in the 60s and is tops on the squad with a 70.83 scoring average.
• Zhao, a 2022 first-team All-Big West selection, tied for first at the Bill Cullum Invitational at 6-under 210.
• Kolbe Irei had back-to-back top-20 showings to start the season and is second behind Zhao with a 71.17 average.
• Redshirt freshman Jin Nakao owns UCI's best round of the young season with a 67 at the Nick Watney Invite.
• True freshman Rei Harashima also fired a 69 and 68 in the first two rounds of the Bill Cullum Invitational.
• Harashima (72.00) and Nakao (72.83) rank third and fourth on the team in scoring average.
• Freshman Andy Zou owns a 73.17 average with a season-best 1-under 70 in the final round at the Nick Watney.
• UC Irvine has competed in the Visit Stockton Invitational in five of the last six years the event has been held.
• During that stretch, the Anteaters had a high finish of third in 2015.
• Last year, the 'Eaters placed 10th, while Zhao was the team's top individual performer, tying for 37th (213).
• UCI has a seven-member squad, marking the first time they have fewer than nine on their roster since 2011-12.
• In addition to the five traveling to Stockton this week are sophomores Johnny Bai and Kevin McGough.
• Bai played in eight tournaments last year with a high finish of 15th at the Big West Championships.
• McGough is a transfer from Skidmore College where he was an NCAA Division III Ping All-American in 2022.
 
UP NEXT
UC Irvine will close out its fall tournament slate with a trip to Maui for the Ka'anapali Classic, Oct. 28-30.