Cougars in Sixth after First Day at Pac-12 Championships

STANFORD, Calif. (April 28, 2023) – Senior Pono Yanagi sits tied for fourth to lead three Washington State golfers in the Top 7 following the first two rounds at the 2023 Pac-12 Men’s Golf Championships, played Friday at the par 70, 6,727-yard Stanford Golf Course.
 
As a team, the Cougars finished the day sixth at -7, 693, trailing leader Arizona State (-24) and just two strokes behind fifth-place Stanford at -9.
 
Yanagi was solid throughout his first 36 holes, posting scores of 68 (-2) and 66 (-4) Friday, posting 10 birdies on the day to finish at -6, 134, five off the lead. Yanagi led a Cougar squad that was hunting the pin all day, finishing with a collective 48 birdies, fourth in the field. WSU also attacked the par-3 holes, finishing with a stroke average of 2.97 on those holes, second among the field.
 
WSU opened strong, firing a 6-under, 344, the second-lowest round-to-par at the Pac-12 Championship in program history. In that round, freshman Sam Renner was tremendous, posting a bogey-free round of 7-under, 63, to hold the first-round lead. Renner’s 63 sets the program record for the lowest 18-hole score at a Pac-12 Championship and ties him with Zach Anderson for the lowest to-par 18-hole score at a Pac-12 Championship. Renner followed that strong effort with a 2-over, 72, in the second round to finish the day at 5-under, 135, tied for seventh overall.
 
Teammate Jaden Cantafio also sits at 5-under, 135, following the first two rounds. His 65 is tied for the third-best 18-hole score at a Pac-12 Championship by a Cougar. Cantafio started his day slow, sitting 6-over through his first seven holes. A birdie on the par-4 18th, his ninth hole of the day after starting on the back nine, started a masterful run that saw him birdie 13 of his final 28 holes. Following the slow start, Cantafio finished his first round with six birdies over his final 10 holes to shoot even-par in the morning. A similar start to his second round as he began with back-to-back bogeys before posting seven more birdies to finish at -5, 65, for the round. Cantafio’s 13 total birdies are tops in the field, as is his 2.60 scoring average on the par 3 holes.
 
Junior Drayton Joseph finished his first two rounds at 4-over, 144, after…