Texas A&M International takes Men’s Division II; Zubov claims Men’s Individual crown
KOHLER, Wisconsin ー It was a debut to remember for the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff men’s golf team at Whistling Straits.
Competing in its first PGA WORKS Collegiate Championship presented by Chase and Kohler Co., UAPB captured the title in dominating fashion. The Golden Lions (23-over) recorded a wire-to-wire victory as the Men’s Division I champions, combining to shoot a final-round 28-over-par 316 on the Straits course and win by 32 over Prairie View A&M University (55-over) and North Carolina A&T State University (55-over), which tied for second.
“Having the opportunity to play this iconic golf course and winning the championship means a lot,” said UAPB sophomore Jose Berenguel. “We work hard a lot, had a few good weeks of practicing and the hard work paid off.”
Berenguel clinched the Men’s Division I medalist title with a three-day score of 7-under-par 209. With a 2-over-par 74 in the final round, he scored a 10-stroke victory.
“It was pretty tough,” said Berenguel. “I was just trying to put the ball in play, make up and downs and make some putts.”
University of Maryland Eastern Shore freshman Max Osten (3-over) shot a final-round 3-over-par 75 to finish medalist runner-up, while North Carolina A&T State University freshman Javier Morgado Rebollar (4-over) finished third after a 5-over-par 77. Golden Lions sophomore Jules De Reu (7-over) tallied a 10-over-par 82 to finish fourth.
In the Men’s Division II Championship, Texas A&M International University Coach Parker Holekamp’s message to his team was simple: keep your head on straight. If the Dust Devils could stay focused amidst the windy conditions at Whistling Straits, Holekamp liked their chances in Wednesday’s final round.
TAMIU (60-over) followed their coach’s instructions to put up a final-round team score of 32-over-par 320, giving them a seven-stroke win over second-place Fayetteville State University (67-over).
“I feel really honored to be able to come play a championship like this at this quality of a golf course,” said Holekamp. “The guys grinded it out and I told them before the round started that whoever was going to come out on top was going to be the team that kept their head on the straightest. So I think they did a good job of that today and I’m proud of them. Today was not easy with the wind.”
With a final-round team score of 41-over-par 329, Fayetteville State University was runner-up at 67-over-par 931. First- and second-round leader Kentucky State University (71-over) took third following a 45-over-par 333.
Kentucky State University senior Micah Stangebye (2-over) went wire-to-wire to win the Men’s Division II Medalist honors.
Stangebye navigated a roller-coaster back-nine on the Irish, which included bogeys on three of his first four holes. He eagled the par-5 14th before posting back-to-back double bogeys on holes 15-16. Birdies at the par-4 17th and par-5 18th secured the two-stroke victory over TAMIU’s Elvis Steen.
“I just had to keep my head down, keep fighting,” said Stangebye. “Today pars were good, so any pars you could make I was happy with it and didn’t make a lot of them, but to finish birdie-birdie, it’s a dream come true.”
TAMIU senior Noah Campbell recorded his team’s low round of the day with a 4-over-par 76 on the Irish course. Steen (4-over) shot 7-over-par 79 Wednesday.
“Both the tracks this week were definitely a challenge, and today with 30-mile-an-hour winds and it being a little chilly caused the greens to get pretty fast and tough,” said Steen. “I was hanging in there, unfortunately I couldn’t grab the top spot individually, but I’m very happy I was able to help our team to victory.”
University of Delaware senior Egor Zubov (6-under) captured the Men’s Individual Championship title with a final-round 4-over-par 76 at the Straits course.
Zubov, playing in his final collegiate event, opened with a birdie at the par-4 1st. After a bogey at the par-4 4th hole, he responded with another birdie at the par-5 5th. Despite a double bogey on the par-4 8th and three-back nine bogeys, he maintained his three-stroke lead with six pars on the closing holes to win.
“Today, coming in knowing that there was going to be a lot of wind, starting off well, but in the midst of it the wind got harder,” said Zubov. “I made a few key mistakes in some sense, but was able to quickly adapt.”
University of Delaware sophomore Arsit Areephun (3-under) shot even-par 72 to finish runner-up. Utah Tech University sophomore KJ Ofahengaue (1-under) finished third after posting an even-par 72.
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