Jayhawks Finish Tied for Second at Kansas Invitational

Sept. 18, 2007

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LAWRENCE, KAN. –

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Nate Barbee led the way for the Jayhawks for the second-straight tournament as the Jayhawks fell just short of claiming a fourth straight Kansas Invitational by tying for second place at Alvamar Golf Club in <?xml:namespace prefix=”st1″ ns=”urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags”?>Lawrence, Kan. Barbee finished tied for 8th place with a final-round 76, marking his first-career top-10 finish.<?xml:namespace prefix=”o” ns=”urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office”?>

The Jayhawks shot a final-round score of 304 but were passed by the Houston Cougars, who entered the day tied for third, and shot a 292 to claim the team crown.

“Obviously we are a little disappointed because you expect to win when you are leading coming into the final round at your home course,” said head coach Kit Grove. “The par-fives were the difference for us. We shot just one-under on the par-fives and Houston picked up 17 strokes on us on par-fives. We just have to become better at course management and I think we will with experience.”

Junior Walt Koelbel finished tied for 11th place after firing a final-round 76. The finish marks Koelbel’s second-best career finish and his best-ever finish at the Kansas Invitational.

Junior Zach Pederson, who competed in the tournament as an individual, shot the best round of the day for the Jayhawks with a 73, allowing him to move-up to a tie for 11th place.

Freshman Brad Hopfinger put the finishing touches to a solid collegiate debut by carding a final-round score of 76 to finish tied for 22nd. Hopfinger tied for most birdies made in the tournament with 11.

Junior Andrew Storm shot a final-round 76 to finish tied for 27th in his Jayhawk debut.

“I told Andrew Storm after play today that I thought he did a great job as our number five guy this week,” said Grove. “His game matches up very well for a number-five guy because he may not go low all that often, but he is very steady.”

Senior Joey Mundy finished the tournament tied for 67th after shooting a final-round 77. Three other Jayhawks competed as individuals. Sophomore Patrick Roth shot a final-round 77 to finish tied for 67th. Sophomore Bobby Knowles carded an 80 to finish tied for 83rd, while junior Daniel Brumley finished 89th with a three-day score of 245.

Houston was able to take home both the team and individual crowns as Jordan Irwin shot a final-round 71 to win medalist honors. Oral Roberts shot a final-round 298 to tie Kansas for second place.

The Jayhawks will next be in action on Oct. 7-8 when they compete in the Windon Memorial Classic in Glencoe, Ill. The Jayhawks will attempt to build off their second-place finish in last year’s event where Zach Pederson finished in third place.

Team Leaderboard

1. Houston 304-292-292–888

T2. Kansas 298-292-304–894

T2. Oral Roberts 295-301-298–894

4. KansasState 298-297-303–898

5. UC-Davis 305-303-294–902

Player Leaderboard

1. Jordan Irwin (Houston) 74-70-71–215

2. Cole Howard (N. Texas) 73-74-70–217

T3. Austin Hannah (Oral Roberts) 73-73-72–218

T3. Kent Monas (ClevelandState) 73-75-70–218

5. Ben Moser (Houston) 76-70-73–219

T8. Nate Barbee (Kansas) 73-72-76–221

T11. Walt Koelbel (Kansas) 77-69-76–222

T11. Zach Pederson-I (Kansas) 76-73-73–222

T22. Brad Hopfinger (Kansas) 74-75-76–225

T27. Andrew Storm (Kansas) 74-76-76–226

T67. Joey Mundy (Kansas) 80-77-77–234

T67. Patrick Roth-I (Kansas) 79-78-77–234

T83. Bobby Knowles-I (Kansas) 82-78-80–240

89. Daniel Brumley-I (Kansas) 82-84-79–245