Bremerton, Wash. - For the first time in his career junior Byron Meth can call himself a tournament champion as the third-year standout finished off his run to the 2014 West Coast Conference title on Wednesday, April 16. Knocking on the door for much of his career, Meth busted the door down for his first career conference and tournament title as the junior led from wire-to-wire to claim the championship. Overall, Meth ran away with the win as he finished seven shots clear of the field at eight-under par for the tournament.
"All the hard work and 17-hour days is worth it when experiencing moments like this," said Meth. "In golf, you lose way more the you win. However, everyone plays to win. Moments like this make it all worth it! I want to thank my teammates as well as my coaches AJ Hohn, Ben Mackie, Brandon Goethals, and Bob Madsen. Most importantly, I want to thank my parents for all the support over the last 18 years of golf. This is a really special feeling and backing up my teammates with a third-consecutive individual win is exciting. As my first collegiate win, it just makes it that much more special. Overall, it was an amazing experience and I look forward to continue to work toward the ultimate goal of playing on tour after college."
As the field around him succumbed to the pressure of the final round of play at the Gold Mountain Golf Course, Meth held steady at the top of the standings as he continued his impressive play in mist and wet weather of Bremerton, Wash. Taking a two-shot lead into the final round of play, Meth let the course come to him on day three of the event as he relied on a steadfast game of pars to cement his place at the top of the leaderboard. For the day, Meth posted 13 pars and mixed in three birdies to fire off a -1, 71 for the second consecutive day.
The win for Meth was the third-straight individual tournament title for the Tigers as Meth followed in the footsteps of departed Tigers Alex Edfort and Eric Sugimoto who won Big West titles in each of the last two seasons. The win for Meth was the first WCC title for Pacific in program history as the Tigers rejoined their original conference at the start of the 2013-14 season.
"Byron Meth did it!," exclaimed interim head coach AJ Hohn. "He has not only won a conference championship as an individual but has won his first collegiate tournament. Byron came prepared and all the hard work he has put in payed off. This is the third year in a row a Pacific player has won a conference championship. I am so proud of Byron. He has proven his ability as a top level player in Division I golf. His dedication and extra effort at home has propelled him to a huge victory. I am both a proud Tiger and a proud coach!"
With the victory, Meth earns a spot in the NCAA tournament as an individual as he makes his way to the postseason for the second consecutive season. The Tigers earned a berth into the NCAA Regionals in 2012-13 as a team. Meth becomes the first Tiger to earn an individual berth into the tournament since Edfort earned a spot in the 2012 tournament.
For the day, the Tigers completed their 2014 WCC Championship in a tie for fifth place as Pacific went 15-over for the day to slip out of contention. The Tigers had entered the day just four strokes off the pace, but a rough outing on day three dropped Pacific out of medal contention. BYU took home the team title as they outlasted the field on a wet and wild final day to finish +10 for the tournament.
