March 10, 2004
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STORYLINE: The No. 10 UNLV men's golf team hosts its annual event for the 29th time this week as the most talented teams and players in the country come to Las Vegas to compete in the Southern Highlands Collegiate Championship. Under a new moniker and sponsorship from the Rebels' home course, the SHCC will feature 15 teams ranked in the top 60 nationally, according to the March 8 edition of the Golfweek/Sagarin Performance Index. Played at Las Vegas' luxurious Southern Highlands Golf Club (7,381 Yards/Par 72), the tournament will begin on Friday, March 12 and conclude on Sunday, March 14. The 54-hole event will carry a standard 4-of-5 scoring format, with 18 holes to be played each day. Tee times will begin at 8:00 a.m. PST each morning. There is also a practice round slated for a 9:00 a.m. shotgun start on Thursday, March 11. The practice round will be followed by a Welcome Lunch, which will begin at approximately 2:30 p.m. at Southern Highlands.
FOR THE MEDIA: The practice round, all rounds of competition and the banquet are open to the media. Admission to the tournament is free, and credentials are not required. Play should conclude each day no later than 4:00 p.m. PST, and results will be posted on the UNLV Official Athletic Website, unlvrebels.com, immediately following each round. Results and a short recap will also be distributed by email to those requesting such. Additionally, Golfstat will provide live scoring of the event, available both on unlvrebels.com and golfstat.com.
THE FIELD: The SHCC boasts a dazzling field that includes the top five teams in the country and 12 in the top 20. Both the top-ranked team in the nation (Florida) and the defending national champion (Clemson) will vie for the title. No. 10 UNLV hosts 14 other teams: No. 1 Florida, No. 2 Clemson, No. 3 Georgia, No. 4 Georgia Tech, No. 5 UCLA, No. 11 Arizona State, No. 13 Augusta State, No. 14 North Carolina, No. 15 Wake Forest, No. 18 New Mexico, No. 20 Arizona, No. 29 Washington, No. 51 North Carolina State, and No. 59 Auburn.
INDIVIDUALLY: Additionally, the event showcases 10 of the country's top 20 individual players, including top-ranked Bill Haas of Wake Forest. Joining Haas in the field are No. 3 James Heath (Augusta State), No. 4 Matt Hendrix (Clemson), No. 8 Chris Nallen (Arizona), No. 9 Ryan Moore (UNLV), No. 11 Camilo Villegas (Florida), No. 14 Matt Every (Florida), No. 16 Gregg Jones (Clemson), No. 17 Jack Ferguson (Clemson), and No. 20 Brock MacKenzie (Washington). Also in the field is Arizona State's Alejandro Canizares, who ranks 26th nationally and is college golf's defending national champion. Moore and Villegas are both past champions of this event, with Moore capturing the 2003 title and Villegas sharing medalist honors in 2002.
THE LINEUP: The Rebels' five-man lineup for the Southern Highlands Collegiate Championship will be: juniors Ryan Moore and Travis Whisman, sophomores Andres Gonzales and Ryan Keeney, and freshman Matt Edwards. UNLV will also send JC Deacon, Sam Hunt and Troy Denton to compete as individuals.
ABOUT UNLV: The Rebels are currently ranked 10th nationally. UNLV capped the fall portion of its schedule with a third-place finish at the Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate before shocking the field with a second-place finish at the Hooters Collegiate Match Play Championship. The Rebels opened the spring with a runner-up finish at the John A. Burns Intercollegiate. Leading the squad are juniors Ryan Moore, who has earned All-America honors twice, and Travis Whisman, an All-West Region selection last year.
PLAYING AT HOME: Four times in the 29-year history of the Rebels' home event has UNLV captured the team title, the last coming in 1999. The Rebs came close last year, falling just short to Oklahoma State for a runner-up finish. However, UNLV did boast the tournament's medalist in Ryan Moore, who shot a final-round 67 to come from behind and win his first collegiate event. He became only the third Rebel to win in Las Vegas, joining Ed Fryatt and Ted Oh.
MORE ON MOORE: Junior star Ryan Moore could possibly be the best player in college golf this year, and certainly one of the most heralded. The two-time All-American has a chance to join former Rebel and current PGA veteran Chris Riley as UNLV's only four-time All-Americans. The Puyallup, Wash., native was a finalist for the Hogan Award last season, presented annually to the top collegiate player in men's golf. He was also selected to the U.S. Walker Cup team, the U.S. Palmer Cup squad and collected his first collegiate victory at home in the Toyota Men's Collegiate Championship. At 20, Moore has already played in two PGA major championships -- the U.S. Open and The Masters. And he was chosen as the UNLV Olympic Sportsman of the Year for the second straight season. Presently, he is ranked ninth nationally.
HEAD COACH Dwaine Knight: UNLV men's golf head coach Dwaine Knight is in his 17th year at the helm of the Rebel program. During his tenure, UNLV has been a perennial power with six league championships, 14 NCAA finals appearances and the 1998 national title. The 2002 MWC Coach of the Year was the only mentor to twice claim GCAA National Coach of the Year honors in the 1990s (1991 and 1998). He has produced an amazing 31 All-Americans and guided six different players to the PGA Tour at UNLV.
A HOME DEBUT: As if it weren't enough making your collegiate debut for the No. 10 team in the country, freshman Matt Edwards will have the unique opportunity to do it in his hometown. A Henderson native and Coronado High School graduate, Edwards qualified for the Rebel lineup this week for the first time in his career. Edwards was the 2002 Nevada state high school champ.
