After a 14-day break from competition, Colorado State men’s golf got back into action with a 1-over 865 to finish seventh in the 2020 Lamkin Grips San Diego Classic.

Coming back from a fourth-place finish in the Wyoming Desert Intercollegiate, the 19th ranked Rams were unable to continue their streak of four consecutive top-five finishes. CSU finished three strokes behind fifth-place California, making it a nail-biting tournament through the end of the course.

Highlighting the competition, Tim Widing of San Francisco shot 8-under par, the best individual score of the tournament.

The team came out slow on Monday morning, shooting a 3-over 291. They got back on track in the second round of the day, improving by two strokes to a 1-over 289.

But after the grueling Monday, consisting of 36 holes, was over with, the Rams had their best round of the tournament on Tuesday.

Tied for fifth going into the final round, the Rams showed maturity by stepping up their game with a 3-under 285, led by senior AJ Ott and sophomore Davis Bryant. 

The rest of the field leveled up as well, displacing Colorado State from the top of the leaderboard. Tournament winner Tennessee fired an 8-under 856 to catapult themselves to victory. Arizona State and San Diego State finished in a tie for second at 4-under par.

Ott followed up a 1-over first round with back-to-back 2-under 70 rounds on Monday and Tuesday. He birdied four consecutive holes during Monday’s second round, helping him tie for fifth.

Bryant also finished in a tie for fifth at 3-under, posting 70 in the second round. Junior Parathakorn Suyasri finished the tournament at 1-over par in a tie for 24th. Jack Ainscough posted a 1-under 71 on Tuesday to finish in a tie for 55th. Oscar Teiffel shot 1-over 73 in his final round to tie for 72nd, but he improved upon his previous round each day.

The Rams have continually shown resilience after slow starts this season. The team posted 7-over 295 in the first round of the Wyoming Desert Intercollegiate, but they followed with consecutive rounds under par for a fourth-place finish in Palm Desert, California. Their ability to adjust to courses over multiple rounds is a good sign for success in the future as the Rams continue their busy spring schedule.

CSU will travel to play in the National Invitational Tournament on March 16-17. The tournament will take place in Tucson, Arizona, at the Omni Tucson National Golf Club.

Owen Stephens can be reached at sports@collegian.com or on Twitter @OwenStephens16.