Nilehn Cards 65, Shares Desert Classic Title

Friday, February 16

Palm Springs, Calif.

All Day

Texas Tech Athletics

Desert Classic

Nilehn Cards 65, Shares Desert Classic Title

February 18, 2018 | Men's Golf

Final leaderboard Follow @TTUMensGolf Follow ttumensgolf on Instagram Like the Red Raiders on Facebook!

Nilehn’s title gives him three individual wins as a Red Raider

By: Texas Tech Athletics Communications

LUBBOCK, Texas – Fredrik Nilehn picked up the third first-place finish of his career on Sunday to lead No. 9 Texas Tech to a second-place finish at the Wyoming Desert Intercollegiate held at the Classic Club in Palm Springs, California.

Nilehn overcame a four-stroke deficit thanks to a career-low 7-under-par 65 card that pushed him into a four-way tie atop the leaderboard alongside Austin Eckroat of Oklahoma State and the California duo of Collin Morikawa and Sebastian Crampton. His 7-under score matched the eighth-lowest card in program history.

Nilehn, who finished the tournament at 14-under overall, was one of five Red Raiders who shot under par on Sunday as the Red Raiders put together their lowest round of the three-day tournament with a 15-under 273. It marked the lowest round of the season for the Red Raiders, who moved to 27-under for the tournament.

Tech defeated four teams ranked in the Golfstat top 40 this weekend—No. 21 UCLA, No. 26 Tennessee, No. 36 Kansas and No. 39 TCU.

"I was pleased with how we competed, especially in today's final round," Tech head coach Greg Sands said. "Again, a win is always what you're after, but I was happy with our consistency. We've beaten some pretty good teams in these first two tournaments of the spring, and we'll continue to improve."

Nilehn's first-place finish was his third as a Red Raider, which moves him into a tie for third in program history, joining Oscar Floren (3), Bryan Novoa (4) and Clement Sordet (5).

"Fredrik [Nilehn] has been so good, and his game was on full display today," Sands said. "I'm proud of how he played late to pull himself even to share the title. Getting up-and-down from the bunker on the 54th hole when he needed it shows the type of golfer he is, when he's at his best."

Nilehn bogeyed the first hole of the day, but that was the final blemish of his round. He shot a 31 on the final nine holes and birdied four of the final six holes of the tournament, including an impressive up-and-down from the bunker on No. 18 to seal the deal.

After a great shot out of the bunker on 1??8??, Freddy had this putt to share the title.

Buried. #WreckEm pic.twitter.com/DkbVhBOmls
— Texas Tech Mens Golf (@TTUMensGolf) February 19, 2018

All five Red Raiders who contributed to the team score finished in the top 25, individually. Hurly Long (-3) tied for 18th, Adam Blomme (-2) tied for 22nd and Wes Artac (-1) and Sandy Scott (-1) tied for 25th. Playing as an individual, Ivan Ramirez (+12) tied for 97th.

Tech will be back in action March 6-8, at the Southern Highlands Masters, in Las Vegas, Nevada. For news and updates on the Red Raiders, follow them on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.