FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, June 1st, 2016

NOTABLE QUOTES: NCAA MEN’S GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPS TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP – OREGON DEFEATS TEXAS TO WIN FIRST NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

Golf Channel Notable Quotes
NCAA Men’s Golf Championships
Team Championship Match Final
Wednesday, June 1, 2016
Eugene Country Club
Eugene, Ore.

Results:
Oregon defeated Texas 3-2 to win the 2016 NCAA Division I Men’s National Golf Championship, its first golf national championship

**Oregon’s Sulman Raza defeated Texas’ Taylor Funk on the third extra hole (21 holes in total) to secure third and final point and the 2016 national championship for Texas.

On Oregon’s Sulman Raza Defeating Texas’ Taylor Funk on the third extra hole (21 holes in total) to clinch Oregon’s first golf national championship
Lanny Wadkins – “They both performed exceptionally well under great pressure. Taylor Funk didn’t lose this thing, Sulman Raza won it. Taylor is to be commended for the way he handled himself and the way he gutted it out when he needed to.”
Arron Oberholser – “Taylor [Funk] will process this the right way. John Fields will help him process it the right way. JP Hebert will help him process this the right way. Taylor Funk played some fantastic golf today. He clutched up when he needed to and he was just beat in the end, pure and simple. He has nothing to hang his head about.”

On Oregon defeating Texas to win its first golf national championship
Bob Papa – “The Washington women thrilled us needing extra holes to win their first ever national championship and then one week later, the Oregon men win their first ever national championship and needing extra holes as well.”
Ryan Burr – “The home team, on home turf, gutted their way to the school’s first-ever team golf national championship.”
Wadkins – “Oregon, unbelievable play all the way down the line for that team.”
Papa – “What a fitting way to end it. The young man who grew up in Eugene delivers the winning point for Casey Martin and the Oregon Ducks.”
Arron Oberholser – “This is why we love this game. This is why we love college golf. This is why it is so much fun to play and watch college golf because of these moments right here. No money on the line. Nothing but pride for the University and pride for yourself.”
Oberholser – “You couldn’t script it any better if you were in Hollywood.”
Buddy Alexander – “This was Aaron Wise’s week, but Sulman Raza was the hero.”

Oregon’s Sulman Raza speaks with Golf Channel’s Nicole Castrale after the match
Sulman Raza – “Those last two holes of regular play and those three playoff holes, I felt like everybody was watching and everything was on my shoulders. I think I handled it great.”
Raza – “I’ve worked so hard to put myself in this position and excel and achieve this goal. To do it on this kind of stage and in front of this many people and fans, I think it is going to give me a huge confidence boost.”

Oregon coach Casey Martin speaks with Golf Channel’s Steve Burkowski
Casey Martin – “They are just competitors. They worked hard and they are great players. It is all about these guys. I haven’t hit a shot, I just told them to breathe. That was the extent of my work. These guys did an awesome job. It is a special group and it is so awesome to bring this to Oregon.”
Martin – “It is surreal. It is so special. I have such strong ties to this community, to this golf course. This is my home. Even though I didn’t go here I am a big time Duck and will always be obviously. This is a track school, a football school and a basketball school. Now it is a golf school too.”
Martin – “It is too hard to explain. We have never had a national championship. We had the individual champion, we had the team champion and the local boy made the putt to win it. It is just unbelievable.”

Oregon’s Aaron Wise speaks with Golf Channel’s Billy Ray Brown after the match
Aaron Wise – “I have no clue what to say. This is a dream come true. We have worked so hard for this exact moment. For Raza yesterday and today to do what he did is incredible.”
Wise – “I practice and play with these guys every day. What they do every day to push me is incredible. I knew they had it in them. It was just a matter of getting out here and doing it.”

Texas Coach John Fields speaks with Golf Channel’s Curt Byrum after the match
John Fields – “You work really hard as a coach and for these players, you come with a dream that someday maybe you can do something special like this. For them [Oregon] to do it with their home crowd here is magnificent. It is good for college golf. It’s good for everybody concerned, but not us right now, because it is stinging. It will be tough for our guys. But that is what it is all about. You’ve got to keep getting better.”
Fields – “We gutted it up today. We had some tough circumstances and almost got the job done. Not quite. But I’m really proud of our guys, proud of our university, proud of the University of Texas and our golf program. We’re just going to keep doing what we do, doing it the right way and we will enjoy these when we get them.”

Texas’ Taylor Funk speaks with Golf Channel’s Ryan Lavner after the match
Taylor Funk – “There were a lot of nerves. Obviously there is a hometown crowd for Oregon, so I wanted to keep that as quiet as possible. Obviously the nerves were there. I loved every minute of it. That is what you live for and we didn’t come out on top this time, but there will be many more opportunities and I’m looking forward to those.”

On Texas’ Scottie Scheffler defeating Oregon’s Aaron Wise 4&3
Papa – “Anytime Aaron Wise does something good, Scheffler responds.”
Byrum – “He [Scheffler] looked at the crowd and said, ‘I am going nowhere. I’m in this.’”
Byrum – “He has been in control of this match. He has played great golf today. He did what he needed to do and had Aaron Wise on his heels the entire match.”
Papa – “The sophomore from Dallas makes 7 birdies in 15 holes to take down Oregon’s best player, the individual champion Aaron Wise.”
Papa – “Tremendous playing by Scottie Scheffler.”

Texas’ Scottie Scheffler speaks with Golf Channel’s Curt Byrum after the match
Scottie Scheffler – “I wanted to play as good of a player as I could. I didn’t ask the coaches to play him but that’s who they paired me against and I performed well.”
Scheffler – “No doubt I was pretty nervous, but I handled it well thankfully and it was a good match.”

 Texas’ Beau Hossler speaking with Golf Channel’s Nicole Castrale before the match
Beau Hossler – “It’s really tough. It’s a lot more stressful watching than it is playing. Certainly hope that we can pull this out. I have a lot of confidence in our guys they have a lot of guts.”

-NBC Sports Group-