49ers swing into 2000

By Gerald Frazier
Daily Forty-Niner

The Long Beach State men's golf team began the 2000 season finishing third of 18 teams Tuesday at the Northwest Collegiate Classic at Oregon State University.

Head Coach Bob Livingstone said the 49ers picked up right where they left off last year.

"To be that close to BYU, and to play with the good teams and show everyone we are as good as we think we are is really good for us mentally," he said.

The team finished just seven shots shy of coming home as tournament champions, shooting a combined score of 841(285-278-278).

Tournament champion Nevada shot a combined 834(277-277-280), and Brigham Young finished second with a score of 837(272-284-281).

Team captain John Mallinger was among three 49ers to place in the top 20, shooting (70-69-68) to tie for seventh place.

Senior Nick Seymour, playing in his first tournament with the team, finished tied for 14th place, shooting 209 (71-70-68).

"I played all right, one under on that course is not bad considering the regionals will be held there," Seymour said.

Senior Brain Merrick tied for 17th place after shooting par.

Oregon's Chris Carnahan won the individual title, shooting 203(67-68-68).

The 49ers began the tournament on a shaky note, missing most of its putts and shooting 285 in the first round.

The team rebounded by finishing strong in last two rounds, shooting (278-278--the only team to shoot under par in the last round.

"The more you play on a golf course, the more you get use to it, Livingstone said. "One thing we are still working on is getting more comfortable on the golf course before the first round."

The next tournament for the 49ers will be September 28-29 at The Mclaughlin Invitational hosted by St. John's University in New York.