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Iowa State University Athletics
Big 12 Championships Next Test For Cyclones
04.23.2008 | Men's Golf
AMES, Iowa- Iowa State head men's golf coach Jay Horton will bring a senior-laden squad down to Trinity, Texas to compete in the 2008 Big 12 Men's Golf Championships, April 25-27 at the Whispering Pines Golf Club. Four Cyclone seniors (Chris Baker, Joe Cermak, Cedric Bertin, Johnny Larson) are hoping to close out their careers in grand fashion.
“Playing well this weekend is everything for us,” Horton said. “We are in the outside looking in right now. If you win your conference, you are the automatic qualifier (for NCAA Regionals). Going into it you control your own destiny.”
Whispering Pines will offer a considerable challenge to the Big 12 competitors. The 7480-yard, Nicklaus Group-designed layout is bounded by creeks and lakes. The Dallas Morning News rated it as the No. 1 course in Texas in 2006. Whispering Pines hosted the championship in 2005 and the Cyclones have two current players (Baker and Cermak) who competed in the tournament as true freshmen. Baker tied for eighth at the 2005 Big 12 Championship to earn all-tournament honors, firing a final-round 67 while posting the lowest score ever recorded by a Cyclone golfer in a Big 12 Championship.
“Whispering Pines is a tremendous facility,” Horton said. “It is one of the best courses in Texas and one of the best in the Midwest. This is the first time in our seniors' careers where they already have played on a Big 12 Championship course. They have some experience and Baker has some good memories to draw back on after he shot 67 in the final round to finish in the top-10. I know they have been talking to the other guys on the team about the course.”
Baker, a native of Brownstown, Ind., is capping off an extraordinary career with the Cyclones. Baker has established himself as one of the best golfers in the Midwest, leading the squad with a 71.19 stroke average and ranking 60th nationally in the latest Golfweek rankings.
He set ISU's record for low 18-hole score in September with a 64 in the Big Four meet and is on pace to break the school's 11-year single-season stroke average mark set by current Asian Tour player Jason Knutzon (72.7) during the 1996-97 season. Baker's consistent play this year, which includes nine top-10 finishes in 12 tournaments, puts him in great position to earn an individual spot at the NCAA Regionals.
“Chris has done everything for our golf program,” Horton said. “He has had an unbelievable career. He has only missed one tournament in four years and has been steady as can be this year. He competes hard on the golf course and is also a tremendous student. He will definitely be missed both on and off the golf course. He will be successful in the future in whatever he chooses to do.”
Sophomore Ben Herrera has emerged as a leader on the Cyclone team after sitting out the first semester. The Wisconsin transfer and Des Moines native has a 73.43 stroke average and a pair of top-10 finishes in six tournaments.
“Ben has been a huge addition to the team,” Horton said. “He is only a sophomore and definitely will be the leader of this team in the next couple of years. He is a fiery competitor who hates to lose.”
Cermak, Bertin and Larson are three seniors who will join Baker and Herrera in the lineup this weekend. A native of Chicago, Cermak ranks second on the team in stroke average at 72.83. Like Baker, Cermak has competed in almost every Cyclone tournament in the last four seasons and will be playing in his third Big 12 Championships. Bertin, a native of Bruz, France, has had a solid spring for the Cyclones, averaging 72.50 strokes per round in the six tournaments this spring.
“This is probably the most experienced team we have sent down to a Big 12 Championship,” Horton said. “Cedric (Bertin) has come on strong this spring. He has found a balance with academics and golf. He has been very focused and driven as of late.
The same goes for Joe (Cermak) and Johnny (Larson). Both of them are very competitive people who have a ton of experience. I want them to have success and go out on top.”
For the first time in Big 12 history, the conference championship will be conducted over 72 holes instead of 54. Competitors will play 36 holes on Friday, followed by 18 holes on Saturday and Sunday. You can follow all of the action at the Big 12 Championships via a live stats feed from golfstat.com.
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