Nick Watney Invitational
Dates: Sept. 25-26 (Monday-Tuesday)
Location: Fort Washington Golf & Country Club
Par/Yardage: Par-71, 6,729 yards

IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine men's golf team will open its 2023-24 season at the Nick Watney Invitational, Sept. 25-26. The two-day tournament will be held at Fort Washington Country Club in Fresno, California.

Thirty-six holes will be contested on Monday, while the final round is slated for Tuesday. Both days will have an 8:30 a.m. shotgun start. The Anteaters are part of a 14-team field that also features California Baptist, Cal State Fullerton, CSUN, Gonzaga, Pacific, Sacramento State, Saint Mary's, Seattle U, Southern Utah, UC Riverside, Utah State, Utah Valley and host Fresno State.

UCI's 5-count-4 lineup includes Darien Zhao, Rei Harashima, Yaoting Zou, Jason Tang and Joshua Lane.

QUICK HITS
• This will mark UC Irvine's eighth appearance in the Nick Watney Invitational over the last 10 years.
• During that stretch, the Anteaters had a high finish of third in 2014.
• The 'Eaters have a seven-man roster with six returners and one incoming freshman.
• Darien Zhao, a two-time All-Big West performer, is the team's only senior.
• Last year, Zhao led UCI with three top-10 finishes and a career-best 72.13 scoring average.
• Rei Harashima (72.42) and Jin Nakao (72.91) also had sub-73 averages in 2022-23.

THE FINAL SEASON
Darien Zhao is the lone senior on the Anteaters' roster. The leadership role isn't new to Zhao, who has been a regular in the lineup and one of the team's top performers since his arrival on campus in 2020-21. Last year, Zhao posted a team-best 72.13 scoring average and had three top-10 finishes. He tied for first at the Bill Cullum Invitational, took sixth in an elite field at the Western Intercollegiate and tied for eighth at The Joust. Zhao has also placed among the top-15 in two of his three Big West Championship appearances, coming in third as a sophomore and 11th as a freshman. He was a first-team All-Big West selection in 2022 and received an honorable mention nod in 2023.

SECOND TIME AROUND
UC Irvine has three sophomores who gained invaluable experience in 2022-23. All three played in every tournament last year with Rei Harashima leading the trio as an All-Big West honorable mention selection. Harashima notched five top-20 finishes and a 72.42 scoring average in his first collegiate season. Jin Nakao (72.91) also made a strong return after an injury in the fall of 2021 kept him off the course for a year, while Yaoting Zou posted a 73.56 average through 32 rounds.

ENTERING THE MIX
Freshman Jason Tang brings impressive credentials to UC Irvine as he has seen success both on the junior circuit and at Santa Margarita Catholic High School where he was an All-Trinity League selection. Juniors Joshua Lane and Kevin McGough both transferred to UCI last year, but saw limited action in their first season at the NCAA Division I level. McGough spent his freshman campaign at Skidmore College where he was a Division III Ping All-American, while Lane was a late add last spring from Orange Coast College.

UP NEXT
UC Irvine will travel to The Saticoy Club in Somis, California, for the Bill Cullum Invitational, Oct. 9-10.