Fourth place finish for KU at Irish Creek

KANNAPOLIS, N.C. – Thanks to three individual appearances in the top-20, the Kansas men’s golf team finished in fourth place at the conclusion of the Irish Creek Invitational. The finish marks the sixth-consecutive appearance in the top-5 for the Jayhawks, and the eighth of the season.

“We made a nice comeback effort during the third round,” said head coach Jamie Bermel. “We got unlucky on the draw and started on the hardest holes this morning in 30 degree weather. Everyone was over par after a few holes, but we worked hard to fight back.”

The frontrunner for the Jayhawks was senior Daniel Sutton, whose even-par finish on the event earned him a third-place finish. This marks the senior’s first top-5 appearance on the season, and the second of his two-year career at Kansas. His third-round 71 featured a late comeback that featured two birdies in his final four holes, allowing him to slide into his top-5 position. At the conclusion of the 54 holes, Sutton was four strokes back of the leader, but was one of only three golfers in the event to shoot even or under-par.

“Sutton played steady all three rounds,” said Bermel. “I thought his par-3 scoring was very nice and deserved his third-place finish. He has been close (to winning) a couple of times and if he can get a few more putts to drop then he could definitely win an event.”

Behind Sutton was junior Charlie Hillier, who ended tied for 12th with a 4-over. Along with a spot in the top-20 on the overall leaderboard, Hillier found himself in the top-20 for both pars (36) and birdies (9) on the event. With his 12th-place result at the Irish Creek Invitational, Hillier now has five top-20 finishes in his last seven events.

Also finding himself in the top-20 was sophomore Andy Spencer, who finished the event at 6-over, tied for 20th place. Spencer tallied 38 pars on the event, which was the most on the team. With this addition, Spencer now leads the team with seven top-20 finishes on the season.

Freshman Harry Hillier came out of the tournament tied for 45th place at 12 over. Despite being plagued by bogeys throughout the event, Harry Hillier boasted the second-best Jayhawk score during Sunday’s final round with a 2-over 73. The late effort from the freshman was crucial for the team, as the Jayhawks ended just one stroke above the fifth-place team.

Rounding off the Jayhawk scorecard was senior Daniel Hudson, who ended the third round with a 4-over 75, upping his event-total to 14-over, tied for 55th place. Hudson’s final round featured three birdies, which was tied for the most on the team during Sunday’s action.

Now, with only one regular-season event remaining for the Kansas men’s golf team, Bermel knows his team is going to have to keep the momentum from its recent stretch of top-5 finishes.

“Three guys in the top-20 is very good,” said Bermel. “We struggled with our fourth score during the first two rounds, and that definitely hurt us, but hopefully we can build from this weekend.”

The regular-season closer will take place April 14 and 15, when the team travels to Iowa City, Iowa for the Hawkeye Invitational.

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