Point Loma Nazarene University (PLNU) junior Sam Cyr topped all competitors during the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Conference championship in Plymouth, Ind. on Friday, capturing the individual golf title.
Cyr outshot his opponents with scores of 69, 70, 71 and 70 for a score of 280, shooting 8 under par.
“Obviously, he’s a very talented player to be able to accomplish that. He’s had a great year, and “¦ to win the tournament from the get-go was his mission,” said PLNU head golf coach Ben Foster.
Cyr became only the third individual champion in PLNU history, having narrowly missed the championship title in 2007.
The previous PLNU individual winners were Greg Brown in 1978, with a score of 290, and Joe Prince in 2006, with a 284.
“I tried to stay steady,” Cyr said. “I didn’t try to do too much. I accepted par and tried to avoid getting into trouble.”
Cyr came very close to winning the title last year at the Plymouth nationals when he controlled the lead entering the final round. He was unable to hold it and finished second. He struggled throughout most of this year and did not win a tournament until the Region II championship.
This year in the NAIA championship, Cyr was able to pressure the lead as he entered the final round down by two shots. Shooting two-under 70, Cyr ended up winning by five shots over runner-up Blake Rowe-Sleeman of British Columbia.
The Sea Lions as a team finished 6th out of a field of 28 schools in the nationals, with an overall score of 1,189.
The top team was British Columbia (1,156), followed by Oklahoma Christian (1,168), Oklahoma City (1,172), Johnson and Wales (1,173) and Wayland Baptist (1,178).
“The top 6 teams were definitely the best teams going in,” said Foster. “We had a bad third round, which hurt us. That sure made a difference.”
Sea Lion players were: junior Trent Castro (placed 28th with 73, 74, 73, 77, 297), senior Brandon Kelley (tied for 33rd with 76, 72, 82, 75, 305), freshman Joel Salmond (placed 76th with 77, 77, 84, 74, 312) and junior Marc Machado (placed 80th with 78, 81, 79, 78, 316).
“It was a tough course to play good golf,” Foster said. “We didn’t play in great summer conditions, with wind and a light drizzle.”
In addition to winning the Region II and NAIA tournaments, Cyr is the first three-time golf All-American in PLNU history and was selected by the National Golf Coaches Association to win the Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicholas awards.
Cyr was selected to the 12-member team for the U.S.-Japan Cup in July. He participated in the U.S.-China Friendship Cup in 2006 as a freshman and will play for the U.S. in the World University Games this September in Sun City, South Africa.