Bill Haas Takes Second Place At NCAA Golf Championship
6/4/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
June 4, 2004
Bill Haas returned to Winston-Salem today with a new NCAA record for stroke average, but UNLV's Ryan Moore made sure Haas didn't go back with a trophy.
Moore birdied six of the first 11 holes today en route to a 66, breezing to a six stroke victory over Haas and Arizona's Chris Nallen at the NCAA Men's Golf Championship in Hot Springs, Va.
"I thought I played decently," said Haas, who shot 70-68-67-68-273 (-7) on the par 70 layout at The Homestead Cascades Course. "I would have liked to win an NCAA Championship, but I am not disappointed. Hopefully, I represented Wake Forest well."
Haas entered today's final round, played in a constant, cold rain, just four strokes behind Moore. But while Haas was earning pars, Moore ran off birdies on holes No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5. The UNLV junior also birdied 8, 10 and 11, making the race for second place and the overall team title the only afternoon suspense.
"I take my hat off to him (Moore)," said Haas, the 2004 Ben Hogan Award winner and the ACC Player of the Year. "You can't count on a guy shooting 6-over, but you also don't bank on someone shooting in the low 60s. I just got beat."
Haas and Nallen finished one stroke in front of Pepperdine's Michael Putnam and two strokes ahead of UCLA's Travis Johnson.
"Bill is an amazing player," Moore said of Haas. "It has been a lot of fun playing with him, actually the last six rounds (including two practice rounds). I was very fortunate to win the tournament."
Haas concludes his illustrious collegiate career on an upswing. Fifteen of his last 16 competitive rounds were at par or better, including all seven rounds in the NCAA Regional and Championship. His final three rounds and nine of his final 13 rounds were in the 60s. Among the many records he takes with him to the professional level is the NCAA record for stroke average (68.93), previously held by Georgia Tech's Bryce Molder.
"I'm sad that it (Haas' college career) is over," said Wake Forest coach Jerry Haas, Bill Hass' uncle. "It's difficult to be the favorite in golf and win. This was just Ryan's week. Bill just didn't quite make enough birdies.
"Bill was 7-under for the tournament and that's nothing to sneeze at. I am proud of the way he conducted himself out here. He'll be fun to watch on the next level. He's a winner in my book."
California won the team title as the Pac 10 swept the first three places. The Golden Bears (+14) finished six shots ahead of second-place UCLA and 14 strokes in front of Arizona. Georgia Tech was the only ACC team to make the cut and the Yellow Jackets finished fifth.
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
Ryan Moore (UNLV) - 66-267 (-13)
Bill Haas (WAKE FOREST) - 68-273 (-7)
Chris Nallen (Arizona) - 70-273 (-7)
Michael Putnam (Pepperdine) - 70 -276 (-4)
Travis Johnson (UCLA) - 72-277 (-3)
Mark Leon (Penn State) - 71 - 279 (-1)
John Holmes (Kentucky) - 72 - 279 (-1)
Matt Wells (Kentucky) - 77-281 (+1)
Jason Hartwick (Texas) - 71-281 (+1)