Coburn leads UC Irvine to win
by Pam Stewart

Nordhoff High graduate Jeff Coburn led the University of California Anteaters to a one stroke win over host Pepperdine in the 12-team Club Glove Intercollegiate Golf Tournament at the Saticoy Country Club in Somis on Tuesday.
Coburn, a four-time MVP while competing on the Nordhoff Ranger golf team, defeated Jae Choi of the University of New Mexico in a one-hole playoff to claim the individual title, after recording a par on the first hole. He shot a three-under-par 69 on the first 18 holes and followed that up with a 72 and 70.
Both players established a tournament mark by carding five-under-par totals.
"After the first drive, it really took a lot of pressure off, because I was about 50 yards ahead," Coburn said. "I used a 3-wood. (Choi) hit shorter off the tee. After each shot it got better, because I hit better shots than he did."
This was Coburn's fifth time to earn medalist or co-medalist honors in a college tournament. He won the Ojai City Golf Championship in 2000 with a record-breaking, 11-under par performance, against the toughest field assembled as of that date - including 20 scratch golfers and 51 with a handicap of two or better.
Irvine posted a two-day, 54-hole total of four-over-par 868 to edge Pepperdine and set a tournament record in the 3-year-old event. Oklahoma recovered from an opening round total of 303 to finish third over, for a team total of 884, followed by New Mexico (887) and UCLA (889).
Coburn, whose average is 70.16, is a senior at UCI. He has made the Big West Conference first team for the last two years and is ranked No. 30 in Golf Stat magazine for NCAA Division I.
The Anteaters play next at a first-time tournament, hosted by UC Berkeley at the Meadow Club in Fairfax.
Coburn's plans, for now, don't include turning professional. After earning his degree with a double major in urban planning and criminology, he hopes to continue playing golf as often as possible as an amateur.

© 2002 The Ojai Valley News

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