Haas Four Strokes Back Heading Into NCAA Final Round
6/3/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
June 3, 2004
With 18 holes remaining in his illustrious collegiate career, Wake Forest senior Bill Haas trails UNLV's Ryan Moore by four strokes after three rounds of the NCAA Men's Golf Championship at The Homestead in Hot Springs, Va.
Haas shot a 3-under par 67 today - his second straight round in the 60s and his seventh consecutive round at par or better - tying for fourth place in the individual standings. He heads into Friday's final round with a three-day total of 205 (-5). Moore, who was paired with Haas today, shot a 6-under 64 for a total of 201 (-9). Arizona's Chris Nallen is in second place, two strokes behind Moore at 203 (-7), followed by Kentucky's Matt Wells at 204 (-6). UCLA's Travis Johnson is tied with Haas for fourth place.
Starting on the 10th tee, Haas shot 2-under 33 on his first nine holes and 1-under 34 on the second nine. In all, he had five birdies and two bogies on the day.
"I was a little shaky on the first nine - the worst I have played in the tournament," said Haas, the 2004 Ben Hogan Award winner. "But I was still 2-under par. On the back nine I had a bad bogey on No. 3, but got two shots back on No. 8 - that was a big swing."
On the par four third hole, Haas came within 30 feet of driving the green, but two errant chip shots resulted in a bogey. Meanwhile, Moore birdied No. 3 and for the moment, held a six-stroke lead over Haas. On the par 3 eighth hole, Haas made birdie and Moore took bogies on his final two holes.
"My goal is to win, of course, but I just plan on playing the golf course tomorrow," Haas said. "If I play well and someone beats me, then so be it. My goal heading into the tournament was to shoot 10-under and that's not unrealistic.
"It's going to take a great round to beat him (Moore). I think he has been in the 60s every round and I expect him to shoot in the 60s tomorrow. He is playing extremely well."
Haas, the two-time ACC Player of the Year, is vying to become the fifth Wake Forest player to win the NCAA Championship. He would join former Deacons Arnold Palmer (1949 and 1950), Curtis Strange (1974), Jay Haas (1975) and Gary Hallberg (1979). Jay Haas is Bill's father.
The 72-hole tournament concludes Friday. Haas, who will be paired with Moore and Indiana's Jeff Overton, will tee-off at 9:12 a.m.
"If we have a couple of swing holes like we did on No. 8 today, then I will be tied for the lead. You just never know what can happen tomorrow."
UCLA holds a five-stroke lead over Kentucky and an eight-stroke margin over California in the race for the team championship.
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
Ryan Moore (UNLV) - 64-201 (-9)
Chris Nallen (Arizona) - 67-203 (-7)
Matt Wells (Kentucky) - 68-204 (-6)
Bill Haas (WAKE FOREST) - 67-205 (-5)
Travis Johnson (UCLA) - 68-205 (-5)
Michael Putnam (Pepperdine) - 67 -206 (-4)
John Holmes (Kentucky) - 67 - 207 (-3)
Mark Leon (Penn State) - 70 - 208 (-2)