Stormin in Norman
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Oklahoma golf: Sooners win NCAA Norman Regional by a stroke

By Chip Rouse

DETROIT, MI - AUGUST 21: Brad Dalke from Norman, Oklahoma looks at his putt on the 7th green during the final round of the U.S. Amateur Championship played on the South Course of Oakland Hills Country Club on August 21, 2016 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images)
DETROIT, MI - AUGUST 21: Brad Dalke from Norman, Oklahoma looks at his putt on the 7th green during the final round of the U.S. Amateur Championship played on the South Course of Oakland Hills Country Club on August 21, 2016 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images) /
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The defending national champion Oklahoma golf team punched its ticket to the NCAA Championship with a wire-to-wire win in the Norman Regional.

The Sooners opened up a five-shot lead after the opening 18 holes on Monday and held on over the final 36 holes to defeat the teams from Brigham Young and North Florida by a single stroke in the 54-hole regional tournament held at the Jimmie Austin OU Golf Club, the home course of the host Sooners.

For the second day in a row, Brigham Young led all teams, posting a team score of 10-under-par 278. BYU was 12 shots back of Oklahoma after day one. Over the final 36 holes on Tuesday and Wednesday, the Cougars were the best team on the course, going 20-under.

The Sooners fired a 54-hole score of 14-under 850 to capture first place. BYU and North Florida tied for the runner-up spot with an 851. Auburn and Arkansas posted a identical score of three-under 861, tied for third,11 strokes back of OU.

All five teams will move on to the 30-team NCAA Championship on May 25-30 at nearby Karsten Creek Golf Club in Stillwater, Oklahoma, home course of the top-ranked Oklahoma State Cowboys.

Two Oklahoma golfers finished in the top four on the individual leaderboard. Sophomore Quade Cummins finished with the second best score over the final 18 holes, a five-under 67 and was eight-over for the tournament in third place with a 54-score of 208. Cummins was three shots back of the individual champion, Travis Trace of North Florida. BYU’s Patrick Fishburn finished second, shooting 10-under 206.

Junior Blaine Hale shot 73 (+1) for the Sooners on Wednesday to end up with a 54-hole score of seven-under 209, good for fourth place. Sophomore Garrett Reband tied for 11th with a 54-hole score of 211 (-4), third best among the Sooners.

Click here for the complete individual results.

The Norman Regional was one of six NCAA Regional sited being held this week across the country. The top five teams and the top individual not on one of those teams advance to the NCAA Championship, which will feature a 72-hole qualifying tournament to determine the top eight teams that will move on to two days of match play.

The winners of the match-play portion of the championship will be crowned national champions. Oklahoma was that team a year ago at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Illinois.

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