Results
SALEM, Ore. — Marcus Otto surged up the leaderboard on Sunday, tying for third place after shooting two under during the final round and helping the Pacific Lutheran University men's golf team place seventh overall at the Willamette Valley Cup held at Creekside Golf Club.
Otto sat in 14th place after Saturday's opening round with an even par 71 before uncorking a round of 69 on Sunday, a two-under par effort that allowed him to climb into a tie for third place. Otto's opening round featured three birdies and 12 pars while on Sunday he was even better with four birdies, 11 pars, and just two bogies.
Koen Solis tied for 13th, shooting a one over par 143. Solis carded a 72 on Saturday with four birdies while shaving off a stroke on Sunday with an even par round of 71.
Soren Bostrom cracked the top 30, placing 29th with a 146 (70-76) while
Luke Butler was 39th with a 148 (75-73).
Tanner Frinell rounded out the Lute competitors, shooting a 151 (75-76).
"I'm very happy with how we performed. We have a great group and this was a good experience for the team. The fact is we played good, but the competition is really good too, and seeing that first hand will motivate us to put in the work," said Head Coach Al Patterson.
"All five players should feel good about their games. Marcus was tremendous and solid both days. It's so nice to see Marcus perform, he makes golf look easy. Koen played steady both days and never wavered. Koen is one of the best players in our conference. Soren led us the first day with a one under 70 and has a complete game.
Luke played steady golf both days and his ball striking is getting dramatically better. I'm excited to see Luke continue to improve. Tanner figured some things out and struck the ball really well. His short game was not at its best, which is usually his strength but he will bounce back and be a factor for us, I have no doubt."
The Lutes finished with a team tally of 577, shooting a 288 on Saturday and a 289 on Sunday to place seventh at the 13-team tournament. Linfield University won the title by two strokes after shooting an electric five under on Sunday, finishing with a score of 566 (287-279). Whitman College and host Willamette University tied for second place, both shooting a 568.
PLU is back in action on Sunday with a match play event against South Puget Sound Community College.
