Kansas wraps up fall play with sixth-place finish

LAHAINA, Hawaii – Kansas men’s golf finished its fall season on Sunday at the Ka’anapali Collegiate Classic, with junior Daniel Sutton posting the best round of the day following a record-setting round by senior Chase Hanna on Saturday, dominating the Royal Ka’anapali Golf Club.

“Played pretty average (Sunday), just really couldn’t get anything going,” head coach Jamie Bermel said. “We can’t play average and expect to do much in a field like this. The top-seven teams are all ranked in the top-40.”

Sitting in first place as a result of nearly tying the NCAA record for a low round, Hanna came into the final day of the tournament at nine-under-par. Able to post his second round of the event under-par, Hanna collected three birdies on the day and finished with a one-under-par, 70. A tie for sixth place finish at 10-under-par marks the fifth time out of six tournaments this season that Hanna has finished in the top-15.

Leading the Jayhawk squad on the final day, Sutton managed to collect four birdies, with his only bogey coming on his 18th hole. After first round struggles, Sutton bounced back with a 67 in his second round, followed by a 68 in the third to finish the event tied for 17th at four-under-par. Breaking the top-20 for the third time this season, a three-round score of 209 marks his lowest 54-hole score as a Jayhawk.

Beginning his round in dramatic fashion, sophomore Charlie Hillier posted a double-bogey on his first hole, followed by a double-eagle on his second. Playing the remainder of the round with consistency, Hillier finished the day at even-par. Hillier began the day at one-over-par after bouncing back from challenges on the first day. He earned a tied for 36th-place finish in the 132-golfer field.

Junior Daniel Hudson posted his first round under-par for the event, finishing the day with 70. Finishing tied for 60th at five-over-par for the weekend, Hudson displayed the consistency that was showcased in the last event.

Recording the only round for the Jayhawks that was over-par, sophomore Jake Scarrow shot a 72. Despite four birdies on the day, a double-bogey matched by pair of back to back late round bogeys caused Scarrow to fall back. Scarrow remained tied for 68th at six-over-par.

Exhibiting obvious improvements in just the third event of his collegiate career, freshman Andy Spencer had a staggering seven birdies on the day to earn himself a tied for 10th finish at eight-under-par. Spencer, who competed as an individual, played with confidence throughout the event, entering the final day tie for 10th at two-under-par.

“Excited to see Andy Spencer do so well,” Bermel said. “He is making a lot of progress and it was good to see him get a top-10 finish in such a strong field.”

With the biggest field of the fall season, Kansas managed to earn a sixth-place finish at 11-under-par in the 24-team event. The Jayhawks were 15 strokes behind the champion No. 24 Clemson, who were closely followed by No. 15 Georgia and No. 13 LSU. Kansas was just seven strokes behind fellow Big-12 competitor, No. 7 Oklahoma.

Kansas will take a three-month break from competition before beginning its spring season in February.

“We are going to take some time off from golf, get some good work in the weight room, recharge the batteries and finish the semester strong in the classroom,” Bermel said.

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