Sept. 12, 2005

VILLANOVA, Pa. - As a sophomore season in which he helped lead the Wildcats to the Big East Tournament for the first time since 2000, Villanova junior golfer Brock Bergman (Pittsburgh, Pa./Shady Side Academy) continued his success during the summer. Bergman played in both the West Penn Amateur and West Penn Open tournaments near his home and placed in the top 15 in the field at each event.

At the West Penn Amateur on June 27-28, Bergman finished in a tie for 13th place in a field of 78 golfers. He carded rounds of 69-75-72=216 to finish at 6-over-par for the tournament. In the opening round, Bergman fired a 1-under 69 in a round that included four birdies and 11 pars. He dropped in birdies on the first and third holes, and made the turn at two strokes under par. He recorded four birdies in the final round as well, playing even par on the back nine to cement his place in the standings. Bergman was just eight strokes off the lead, as Scott Phillis earned medalist honors with a three-round score of 2-under-par 208.

The 105th West Penn Amateur was contested at Indiana Country Club. The tournament is open only to amateur players and is invitation-only. Indiana Country Club is a par-71 course that measures 6,510 yards from the championship tees.

Bergman qualified for the West Penn Amateur on June 16 with his play at the Hill Crest Country Club. He was one of 19 qualifiers from a field of 59 golfers. In his round at Hill Crest, Bergman carded a score of 3-over-par 74 to tie for 11th place. His round included birdies at holes three, 16 and 17. He played the final three holes at 2-under-par to come in one stroke under the cutoff to qualify.

Just a few days later, Bergman competed in the West Penn Open and finished in a tie for 12th place. In a field that included 124 golfers, Bergman carded rounds of 73-77=150 to finish at 10-over par in the 36-hole event. He registered 13 pars in his opening round, and concluded the tournament with a pair of birdies on the final 18 holes. Roy Vucinich captured his fifth straight West Penn Open title by shooting a 2-under-par 138 to finish four strokes ahead of the rest of the field.

The West Penn Open was held July 5-6 at the par-70 Oakmont Country Club. Bergman qualified for the event at Chartiers Country Club, where he came in with a 3-over-par 73 to be one of 30 golfers to earn a qualifying score in a field of 93 hopefuls. Bergman birdies holes two and 11 in his round at Chartiers, and tied for 14th place.

Bergman's success during the summer season comes on the heels of his sophomore season on the Main Line, in which he played in all 23 of Villanova's team rounds in 12 tournaments. Bergman ranked third on the team with a 76.87 stroke average for the season. He proved to be the team's most consistent golfer, scoring between a 73 and a 79 in all but two of his rounds. Bergman had 22 of his scores counted in the team's score, and led the squad with 96 percent of his rounds being counted. He posted two top-10 and one top-20 finishes on the year, with all three of those coming in his last three tournaments.

Villanova was chosen to participate in the Big East Tournament for the first time since the event was reduced to six qualifying teams. During the 2004-05 season, the Wildcats also won their first tournament since October 1997.

Through his first two seasons at Villanova, Bergman owns a 77.61 stroke average. He has played in 17 tournaments and 33 rounds of golf, and has had at least a share of team medalist honors in five of those tournaments.

The Wildcats begin the 2005-06 campaign at the Rutgers Invitational from September 15-17.