SEASIDE, Calif. - No. 22 Santa Clara men's golf turned in the lowest round of the day Tuesday in the second round of the 2026 Saint Mary's Invitational, carding 8-under 280 to climb six spots in the standings. The Broncos enter Wednesday's final round in third place at 11-under 265 and are just four strokes off of the lead.
Junior
Emil Nielsen once again led the charge individually, shooting 5-under 67 for the day to climb into a tie for third at 7-under 137.
ROUND HIGHLIGHTS:
- Nielsen was sensational in the second round, opening the day on the par 5 No. 10 hole with an eagle before sinking birdies on Nos. 13, 18, 2 and 4 to climb all the way to the top of the individual leaderboard. He double-bogeyed the No. 7 hole but closed with another birdie and par to close the round.
- Nielsen is part of a three-way tie for third place at 7-under 137. He enters the final round just three strokes behind Cal Poly's Frederick Egnatios (-10) for the lead.
- Nielsen, ranked No. 14 in the Golfweek Rankings, has not shot under par in 10 of 11 rounds played in the fall.
- Freshman Ryan Xie also had a big day, turning in three birdies as part of a 2-under 70 round. He enters Wednesday's round tied for 13th at 3-over 141.
- J.P. Odland and Jared Abercrombie, playing as an individual, both shot 1-under 71 for the day and are tied with each other for 21st at 1-under 143.
- Matt Robles shot even par for the second-straight day and is tied for 28th alongside Tucker Sweeney, also playing as an individual, who shot 1-under in the round to finish the day at even-par through 36 holes.
- Jack Hayden bounced back from Monday's opening round 78 with a 4-over 74.
- Oregon holds a two-stroke lead over No. 47 Cal at 15-under par. The Bears are 13-under followed closely by the Broncos, No. 33 Washington (-10) and Cal Poly (-7).
- Santa Clara's 8-under 280 was three strokes better than anyone else in the 18-team field. Oregon had the second-best round at 5-under.
SANTA CLARA INDIVIDUALS:
| Place |
Player |
Score (To Par) |
| T3. |
Nielsen |
70-67--137 (-7) |
| T11. |
Xie |
71-70--141 (-3) |
| T21. |
Odland |
72-71--143 (-1) |
| T21. |
Abercrombie (Ind.) |
72-71--143 (-1) |
| T28. |
Robles |
72-72--144 (E) |
| T28. |
Sweeney (Ind.) |
73-71--144 (E) |
| T87. |
Hayden |
78-74--152 (+8) |
