Jayhawks Finish Third at Fairway Club Invitational

Sept. 9, 2008

NEBRASKA CITY, Neb. –

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Nate Barbee fired a final-round 73 to lead the Kansas men’s golf team to a third-place finish at the Fairway Club Invitational in Nebraska City, Neb at ArborLinks Golf Club (par-72, 7158 yards). The finish marks the Jayhawks’ best team finish since the 2007 Kansas Invitational.

The Jayhawks shot a two-day total of 591 to finish behind South Dakota St. (580) and Western Illinois (582) in the 12-team event.

“I am very pleased with how we played and it is a very solid start to our year,” said head coach Kit Grove. “Nate played a very solid tournament for us and we were also fairly consistent as a team.”

Barbee tied for fourth place shooting 70-73–143, for his top career finish. Barbee’s previous best finish came at the 2008 Ron Moore Invitational when he tied for fifth.

Senior Andrew Storm had a very solid day for the Jayhawks, eclipsing his previous bests in both single-round score and tournament finish. Storm fired a final-round 73 propelling him into an 18th place tie with a 149 total.

Freshman Ian Anson, a native of Surrey, England, turned in a tie for 25th place after shooting a pair of 75’s in his first collegiate event. Senior Walt Koelbel fired a final-round 79 to finish in a tie for 33rd place. Freshman Blake Giroux improved upon his first round score by two strokes to fire a 76 and finish in 42nd.

Junior Patrick Roth competed in the event as an individual and tied for 56th after a final round 81.

Shane Pearce of Texas Pan-American retained his clubhouse lead by firing a final-round 71 to win individual medalist honors.

The Jayhawks will next be in action on Sept. 15-16 as they host the 2008 Kansas Invitational at Alvamar Golf Club. Check back to kuathletics.com for complete coverage of the 2008-09 men’s golf season.

Team Leaderboard

1. South Dakota State (292-288—580)

2. Western Illinois (290-292—582)

3. Kansas (294-297—591)

4. Northern Illinois (294-298—592)

T5. Illinois State (303-291—594)

T5. Missouri State (299-295—594)

Individual Leaderboard

1. Shane Pearce, Texas Pan-American (68-71—139)

2. Trent Peterson, South Dakota St. (69-71—140)

3. Jared Steger, Western Illinois (71-70—141)

T4. Nate Barbee, Kansas (70-73—143)

T4. Jay McBride, Missouri St. (72-71—143)

T18. Andrew Storm, Kansas (76-73—149)

T25. Ian Anson, Kansas (75-75—150)

T33. Walt Koelbel, Kansas (73-79—152)

42. Blake Giroux, Kansas (78-76—154)

T56. Patrick Roth, Kansas (80-81—161)