PARKER, Colo. – The Washington State men's golf team jumped two places to finish eight, after a strong third round in the Paintbrush Invitational, Wednesday, at the Colorado Golf Club in Parker.

"We played solid in what was probably the toughest day we've seen in a long time," said head coach Dustin White. "We didn't have to work as hard today, and were able to string together some quality shots. Now it's just a matter of doing that from the first tee-shot to the last putt. Consistency is key."

The Cougars ended the day only six strokes over par, putting them at a three-round score of 897 (+33), to place eighth. Oregon (+14, 878) and Wyoming (+27, 891) were the only teams that managed to score even during play Tuesday. Colorado State (+6, 870) won the tournament, scoring eight strokes ahead of second place Oregon. Northern Colorado (+19, 883) followed closely behind in third. WSU was just two strokes behind UTEP (+31, 895) in seventh.

Senior AJ Armstrong (+5, 221), tied for 17th, and has led the Cougars in all three tournaments this fall, earning a top-25 position each time. Junior Daniel Kolar (+6, 222) finished only one stroke behind Armstrong in a tie for 21st. Armstrong and junior Nicklaus Chiam (+11, 227), who tied for 32nd, led the Cougars through their second-day surge, both carding a 73 (+1) in the third round. Senior Grant Cole (+11, 227) shared 32nd place with Chiam, both improving 17 places. Wrapping up for the Cougars was Scott Redelsperger (+24, 240), who tied for 65th. Ryan Maine (+31, 247) competed as an individual in Parker, and placed 71st.

The Cougars will compete on the green again in a three-day tournament Nov. 5-7 at the Saint Mary's Intercollegiate at Pebble Beach, Calif., on the Poppy Hills Golf Course.

Team Scores:
T17 AJ Armstrong 71 (-1), 77 (+5), 73 (+1) = 221 (+5)
T21 Daniel Kolar 77 (+5), 71 (-1), 74 (+2) = 222 (+6)
T32 Grant Cole 80 (+8), 73 (+1), 74 (+2) = 227 (+11)
T32 Nicklaus Chiam 76 (+4), 78 (+6), 73 (+1) = 227 (+11)
T65 Scott Redelsperger 83 (+11), 82 (+10), 75 (+3) = 240 (+24)

Individual Scores: 
71 Ryan Maine 83 (+11), 80 (+8), 84 (+12) = 247 (+31)