GCC one step closer
Having all but locked up a spot in the Southern California Regionals, the Glendale Community College men’s golf team turned to its two top players to move it a step further to making that become a reality.
With Michael Timpson and Mathias Dahl each shooting two-under-par 70s to share medalist honors, Glendale college won its second consecutive Western State Conference match Monday afternoon at Santa Maria Golf Course.
The Vaqueros, who shot a 365 to best College of the Canyons by one stroke, own a 10-win lead over third-place Ventura College with only a 36-hole conference final left next Monday at Marshallia Ranch Golf Course in Lompoc. Canyons owns a 10-win lead over the Vaqueros.
After a slow start to the season, things have begun to turn around for the Vaqueros, who advanced to the state tournament for the first time in the program’s history last season. The top two teams in conference, plus the next lowest team score, automatically qualify for the Southern California Regionals, which will be held May 7.
“Our scores [Monday] were amazing,” said Glendale Coach Greg Osbourne, who also received a 73 from Richie Maloof, a 75 from Clayton Ojeda and a 77 from Ryan Chotivichitr. “Everything is coming together at the right time.
“If we had a bad hole, then they would come back on the next one and get a birdie. They came though when they needed to.”
Allan Hancock placed third with a 377, followed by Ventura (378), Bakersfield (379), Citrus (380) and Santa Barbara (393). The Vaqueros won April 16 on their home course of Oakmont Country Club.
Timpson, a Crescenta Valley High graduate and the conference’s reigning individual champion, finished with 12 pars and four birdies.
“I started out hitting a couple of greens and I was three-under-par 34 through the front nine,” said Timpson, a sophomore. “The back nine was a little tricky, but I stayed with it.
“It’s definitely a confidence booster for me doing well and for us to beat COC again. I think we have a lot of confidence [going into the conference final].”
Dahl, a freshman, played the course — which will be the site for the state championship tournament — for the first time.
Dahl, a native of Sweden, said it didn’t take long for him to adjust to the venue.
“It’s pretty straight forward,” said Dahl , who recorded 10 pars and five birdies. “There’s a lot of tree lines and fairways and I was able to hit a lot of shots on to the greens.
“I thought I had a solid round and it’s a lot of fun being on this team. We’ve done well the last couple of weeks.”
