Well the Pokes managed to finish stroke play (giggle) tied for 3rd (and win the tiebreaker with Illinois), and enter match play today where they will take on Ohio State. Tee time for the OSU vs OSU matchup is set for 12:15

All Friday Tee Times are here:

Feel free to discuss.. you know.. golfing and golfing related things. Here is a quick list of what is and is not deemed as acceptable to do in this golf thread.

Acceptable: Post score updates for those that cannot attend or view the leaderboard
Unacceptable: Talk about how golf isn't a real sport and the NC's from it are meaningless. Golf is real... i have seen it.

Acceptable: Observations about the course from the time you played Karsten.
Unacceptable: Any other type of discussion about your own golf game.  We know, one time you almost had a hole in one, another time you eagled #3 at Lakeside. Everyone has these types of golf stories..... we care about our own, everyone else's are boring....especially Royal's.

Acceptable: Pictures of attractive people golfing.
Unacceptable: Pictures of unattractive people doing anything. (This is a pretty person blog)

The first two rounds of the 2011 NCAA Men's Golf Tournament have been played.  The Cowboys are only in sixth place going into the third and final round of stroke play, which is surprising to all given that Karsten Creek is our home court. 

The leaders, our nemesis Georgia Tech whom Yachoff hates with a burning intensity, are at -3 under which is what the lead has been hovering around the entire tourney.  The Cowboys are +9, so a great day today would easily get them back to at least a share of the lead with the "North Avenue Trade School" (this is a complicated dis on G.T., look it up), but they are also perilously close to being eliminated from the tournament altogether.  It looks like the top 8 cut will be at around +15 or so.  The leaderboard looks like this:

1. Georgia Tech -3
2. UCLA -2
3. Illinois +2
4. Georgia +3
5. Alabama +4
6. Oklahoma State +9
7. Augusta State +12
8. Texas A&M +14/Ohio State +14

Individually, Cowboy golfer and Masters participant Peter Uihlein is carrying us on his back at -2 under, 2 shots back of the leader Georgia Tech's James White who is -4 under. 

Sean Einhaus and Kevin Tway are the Cowboys who need to shore it up today.  Einhaus shot a par 72 the first day, but had an ugly 80 day yesterday to go 8 back from Even.  Tway shot a 77 and a 74 to go +7, so he is improving, but as one of OSU's best golfers Tway needs to be out there gaining shots on the pack. Yachoff has all the confidence in the world that State will get in, but we need the Cowboys to get over their nerves and start playing their home course like the fine fiddle that it is.  Stay Tuned.  

When talking about our favorite sports teams, especially when they are on the precipice of success, we tend to try not to talk about that team winning until it actually comes to pass because of a fear of some kind of "jinx".  We "knock on wood" to try and compensate for any slip of the tongue.  Well, to hell with jinxes.  This coming Sunday afternoon, Oklahoma State will win it's eleventh NCAA golf championship, and 51st team national championship overall. 

On paper it is easy to laugh in the face of any superstition.  OSU is the number one ranked team in the country and is playing this week at OSU's own Karsten Creek, the course that they practice on day in and day out.  OSU has Peter Uihlein, the number one ranked amateur golfer in the world.  So, we have these things going for us...which is nice.  

OSU faces some competition from the likes of UCLA, defending champs Augusta State, Texas A&M, Georgia, and Georgia Tech.  The thirty team field will play three rounds of stroke play (where shots are added or subtracted from zero, or "Even"), then will take the top eight stroke play teams and switch to three days of match play where individual golfers will earn their school a point for every hole they best their opponents.  Although some think the equalizing match play has cost State the tournament the last two years, with Uihlein and Senior Cowboy golfer Kevin Tway, OSU has some of the most excellent college golfers to choose from for that round.

Stay tuned this week for more updates on the run to # 51...

Course architect Perry Maxwell's Prairie Dunes was the site of a Big12 massacree these last three days.  The -10 under par Cowboys fired through Maxwell's beautiful layout on Tuesday broke a single round record, while the likes of Texas A&M, Texas, Texas Tech, and OU were playing through wet sand 12-25 shots back, and the rest of the conference was looking for their balls in tall prairie grass completely out of the running.  It is alleged that Iowa State and Kansas State started drinking heavily around the back nine the first day, but this can not be proven despite the fact that both teams officially blacked out at around +70ish by round three.  Kansas State would(again, allegedly)eventually out 'drunkgolf' Iowa State by ritualistically team-chugging warm, bitter 40oz 'Old Englishes' on hole 18 to finish +Ninety Three for the tournament, passing out in last place.

On a cloudy and cold Kansas Wednesday, Oklahoma State continued their Golf highstep into the clubhouse. They shot 1139 total shots as a team for the tournament. The Cowboys took it easy the last round dropping 14 shots for their worst day as a team, but still beat second place Texas A&M by 13 shots.  The battle between the other teams for second place proved mildly entertaining, but then again not really.  The tournament was just more OSU Golf conference dominance, the way it's been since your pappy was born.

OSU cowboy Morgan Hoffman continued his uncontested lead with OSU's Kevin Tway right behind as runner-up.  Tway had battled with OU's Ryan Sirman throughout the tournament, but Sirman fell apart bogeying up a storm in the last round.  Hoffman finished managed the only par score to take individual honors, while Tway finished +5 for second. 

Congrats Cowboy Golfers!  Five Big12 conference tournaments in a row, and number one program in the land going into the 2011 NCAA tournament on OSU's home court of Karsten Creek in June.

After the jump is the Oklahoma State Cowboy Golf trophy room...

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Sure, we need a place to discuss the final day of the Big 12 golf tournament, but as of the typing of this sentence the Pokes hold a 19 stroke lead and are a shoe in to take their 5th straight Big 12 Golf Championship. Thus the comments of a golf-only thread would no doubt be of the "ho hum, Pokes take 25 stroke lead" kind of thing.  So if you are not into boring everyone with more talk of yet another Big 12 golf championship, feel free to contribute an alternate comment of an uncomfortable picture of Oklahoma State Alum and Legend, Garth Brooks.  Ya, we love the guy, but even the part of our heart that is still ropin the wind must admit (and admire?) that Garth can take some of the most uncomfortable pictures of any celebrity in history.  Pictures that are tough to look at as you immediately feel shame for him, knowing that he looks back on every one with regret. But alas, as Cowboy fans, Garth/Chris is our savior, and we love him and his uncomfortable picture collection.

Your choice Cowboy fans, Golf talk, or uncomfortable Garth Brooks pictures.

Big12 Golf action culminates in today's tournament at Prairie Dunes Country Club in Hutchinson, KS.  The three day, four round format will have 36 holes today and 18 holes Tuesday and Wednesday.  Number one ranked Oklahoma State dominated the first 2 rounds with a five man team that includes U.S. Amateur champ and Masters tournament participant Peter Uihlein and Kevin Tway, son of Cowboy golf great and 1986 PGA Tournament champion Bob Tway.  OSU golfer Morgan Hoffman and Tway find themselves in first place at -1 Under.  Here is what the team leader board looks like after most of the first 36 holes:

1. Oklahoma State +13
2. Texas +18
3. Texas A&M +20
4. (Tied) Texas Tech +21,Oklahoma +21
5. Obsolete Team/Who Cares?
   
6. Obsolete Team/Who Cares?
   
7. Kansas
   
8. Baylor
9. Missouri
10. Kansas State
    
11. Iowa State

If State can continue to shoot productively tomorrow when the weather will be better than today's drizzly conditions, they should have no problem winning their fifth-straight Big12 crown on Wednesday.  Surviving today will probably be the hardest part of the tournament as playing 36 holes in one day is a grueling task even in pleasant conditions, unless of course you play a beer-a-hole like Yachoff does.  Then your only problem in life is convincing the clubhouse to sell you an entire case of beer, plus a six pack. 

Tune in Wednesday for more Big12 tournament coverage.  You can also see a live, updated scoreboard here.

What a weekend we have had!  Oklahoma State golf has been well represented at Augusta all week with four former or current Cowboy golfers making up the 99 player field. OSU has another top ten representative to be proud of for a third consecutive year.  We've learned a lot these last few days, how to pick up hot, newly divorced Swedes, how to make disgusting alcoholic beverages named for touring golf professionals, why we do not pick up strange honey badgers off the ground..they will bite you..., and we have grown as human beings since watching televised golf makes you smarter, like listening to classical music.  It's a proven fact. 

South African golfer Charl Schwartzel stole the tournament by birding the last four holes of the fourth round. The last five holes were exciting as it looked like several golfers including Bo Van Pelt, Adam Scott, Jason Day, K.J. Choi, could have claimed the lead as the day drew to a close.  Alas, Schwartzel was the only one who could answer the call as he charged the last part of the tournament to go -14 under and win the 75th playing of the Masters outright.

Former Oklahoma State golfer and Tulsa resident Bo Van Pelt had an amazing back nine this afternoon with two eagles in three holes. He lost 2 shots on the day to finish -8 under, and 6 strokes behind the eventual winner.  Van Pelt makes the third consecutive OSU golfer to make the top ten in the Masters (Hunter Mahan had top tens in '10 and '09). Mahan won $225,000 dollars last year for 8th place, so Van Pelt's weekend earnings will be comparable.  For each eagle made, Bo will win a pair of crystal goblets. So be on the lookout for Masters stemware at swanky Tulsa area pawnshops.

After the jump are the scores for the other featured participants, and we will say farewell to a valued CRFF mascot.

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The second round of the Masters golf tournament was played under sunny skies, and it was another 8 hours of hard-hitting, bone-crunching, rib-shattering, golf ACTION on the Augusta links.  Twenty-one year old Rory McIlory kept his lead on lockdown all day, and managed to gain 3 strokes to go into the clubhouse at -10 under.  This young man was watching "Pokemon" not that long ago (or at least its Irish equivalent), and now he is leading going into the weekend at the Masters.  Phil Mickelson dialed in a 72 round to stay -2 under, and Tiger has been heating up through the back nine and as of this writing was -6 under through 17 holes. Tiger looks primed for a weekend showdown with McIlroy, but even if Tiger wins on Sunday, will it fill his cold and vacant heart?

Former OSU golf great and PGA Rookie of the Year Rickie Fowler had a position gaining round as he shot -3 under on the day to go to -5 under and five shots back of the lead. Fowler birdied two of the three par 3 holes including the toughest hole on the course this week, hole #12.  Bo Van Pelt also had an awesome day picking up 3 shots to be -2 under and in contention going into Saturday's third round.

Fowler and Van Pelt both played today like at least top ten finishers.  Twenty-two year old Fowler also had the opportunity to play with leader McIlroy and Jason Day, a twenty-three year old Australian who is second. Fowler was able to stay competitive with McIlroy, and probably lost a stroke or two just by proxy.  The total combined age of these kids is only 65.  These kids are so young, after the three got finished with #18, their moms were ready for them with juice boxes and Teddy Grams.

According to ESPN, the projected cut will be at +1, and unfortunately Hunter Mahan could only make up one of his strokes today to get back to +2. The current OSU golf team's chance at Masters glory was also cut down as Peter Uihlein shot a +5 today.  Disappointing yes, but it won't be the last time we see either golfer at Augusta.  Day Three promises to be even more exciting as Fowler and Van Pelt make a run for the Orange Jacket, and Yachoff unveils the official CRFF Masters mascot: "Augusto, the Rabid Masters Honeybadger".