Jayhawks, King Capture Wins at Hawkeye Invitational

IOWA CITY, Iowa – The Kansas men's golf team captured its first team title since 2022 on Tuesday at Finkbine Golf Course, winning the Hawkeye Invitational by 19 shots after going 27-under as a team.

Junior Will King earned medalist honors with a score of 9-under (207), marking the second individual title of his collegiate career after winning the event by two shots.

"We played a very solid, disciplined and focused day of golf today. Wind was humming all day and we made it look pretty simple," said Kansas head coach Jamie Bermel.

Kansas' team victory marks the program's first title since the 2021-22 season, when the Jayhawks also won the Hawkeye Invitational on April 17, 2022, with a score of 12-under par. The win is the 17th team title for the Jayhawks under Bermel, who has led the program since the 2012-13 season.

Kansas claimed the tournament championship at 27-under, while Illinois State finished in second place at -8. Tournament host Iowa finished in third place at -7. Kansas' 19-shot margin of victory is tied for the sixth largest in program history (19 shots – 1998 Kansas Invitational).

King claimed his first win since the Gopher Invitational in 2023. Starting the final round two shots off the lead, he quickly carded two birdies in his first five holes. King remained bogey-free until the 18th, finishing the round with a one-under 71 and a tournament total of -9. His second collegiate win came with rounds of 69-67-71—207, leading the 74-player field with 14 birdies over 54 holes.

"Will was solid all day and it was nice to see him get his second win of his career," Bermel added. "He has battled an injury this spring and seems healthy and playing well."

Senior Gunnar Broin finished just two shots behind his teammate King, securing second place at -7. Despite a final-round 75, Broin opened the event with back-to-back 67s, marking his third top-5 finish of the season. Broin leads the team with 12 rounds in the 60s this season.

Sophomore Max Jelinek had an up-and-down final round, finishing with an even-par 72 and securing a top-5 finish. Jelinek made three birdies on the first 10 holes, but then recorded a bogey, a triple bogey and a bogey before sinking back-to-back eagles. His first eagle came on the par-5 15th, followed by a hole-out on the 405-yard par-4 16th. Jelinek finished in solo fourth place at -5 after rounds of 68-71-72. Jelinek led the field this week in eagles made with three.

Junior Luke Honner carded four birdies in his final-round 70, climbing 12 spots on the individual leaderboard to finish tied for 10th. He opened the tournament with a 69, followed by a 75 and 70 to finish at 2-under for the event.

Freshman Ty Lasley posted rounds of 74-72-74 to finish in a tie for 20th at +4 after also jumping 12 spots on the leaderboard. The top-20 finish is the first of his collegiate career.

Sophomore Noah Holtzman competed as an individual for Kansas this week, also finishing in a tie for 20th at +4. He shot a final-round 78, following opening rounds of 70 and 72 on Sunday.

"It was a total team effort from top to bottom. I can't say enough of how hard these guys have worked all year and to finally get a win is very rewarding to the team and coaches," said Bermel.

UP NEXT
Kansas will now turn its attention to the Big 12 Championship, set for April 22-24 at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

University of Kansas Athletics

Jayhawks, King Capture Wins at Hawkeye Invitational

Players Mentioned

Gunnar Broin

Noah Holtzman

Luke Honner

Max Jelinek

Will King

Ty Lasley

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