After tying with San Diego State for the third-place spot in the Barona Collegiate Cup on Monday, the men’s golf team sank to No. 5 after Tuesday’s third and final round.
The Mustangs ended the tournament with an overall score of 860, putting them 33 strokes behind No. 1 Texas A&M’s cumulative score of 827. San Diego State came in 20 strokes behind A&M to capture the second spot, with the University of San Diego following in third with 851 total points. Oklahoma State University came in just seven strokes better than SMU to clinch the fourth-place spot.
In the final round, SMU fell behind, falling only one stroke shy of allowing Wichita State University to tie in fifth place with them. The Shockers finished the tournament with 861 points, just one stroke ahead of the Mustangs.
The Mustangs tied with San Diego State University after completing two rounds of play at the Barona Creek Golf Club in San Diego, Calif., on Monday. The men recorded scores of 291 and 283, respectively, on the 72-par course. SMU’s Dan Kleckner, who shot a 74 and 68 the first day, along with Kelly Kraft (72-70), were tied for ninth at 2-under par each after Monday’s rounds.
Kraft, a freshman from Denton, received the honor of being Conference USA Player of the Week on March 12 after winning medalist honors at the Louisiana Classic Golf Tournament last week. Kraft recorded a final-round score of 70, leading to a win at the Oakbourne Country Club.
Scott Barton hit a 70 and 75 on the day one, putting him just one over par, and tying him for 21st. Ben Tewes finished the first day in 33rd place after golfing a 75 and 73, and James Minahan ranked 38th after hitting a 77 and 72.
Tewes is currently ranked at No. 5 in C-USA polls, averaging 72.23 strokes per game in his 18 rounds this season. Kraft falls at No. 10, averaging 72.86 strokes in 22 games.
The men finished out the tournament shooting four under par. Kleckner finished first for the Mustangs, and 12th overall in the tournament, after finishing three under par. Barton came in second for the Mustangs and 15th overall after shooting 214 overall, just one stroke below teammate Kleckner.
Nacho Elvira of A&M was the best golfer in the tournament, shooting 12 under par, and averaging a tournament-low 68 per round. The Aggies swept the tournament, with the top two overall scores, as well as the No. 4, 6 and 23 best overall individual scores out of the 60 participants.
Prior to heading into Monday’s opening rounds, A&M was ranked at 39 in the country, considerably lower than No. 5 OSU. Other ranked teams taking part in the Barona Collegiate Cup included No. 33 Wichita State, No. 34 San Diego State and No. 42 Coastal Carolina.
The men’s next event will be in Wichita, Kan., as part of the three-day Diet Pepsi Shocker Classic starting on March 30.
