The No. 12 men’s golf team won its 24th Mid-American Conference (MAC) Championship on April 30 at the Virtues Golf Club in Nashport, Ohio.
The Kent State Golden Flashes finished the four-round tournament with a score of 3-under par 1,149 (287-288-285-289), breaking its own four-round tournament record for team score. Kent State won the tournament by 25 strokes, defeating second-place Ball State at 22-over par.
“This was a hard golf course, and it didn’t let up,” said head coach . “We played four different rounds, and it played four different ways. We were out there for 8.5 hours today. It started really peaceful and calm, and then the rain started blowing in sideways.”
Kent State also took individual medalist honors, with finishing first overall. Over four rounds, the sophomore finished at 8-under par 280, coming from behind to beat Miami’s Patrick Flavin by two strokes. Sveinbergsson finished the weekend with a 71, his fourth straight round under par.
After the tournament, Kent State was honored with several awards from the MAC. The Golden Flashes had all five of the golfers in their lineup named to the All-MAC First Team, while Sveinbergsson and were named to the All-Tournament Team. Holt claimed MAC Golfer of the Year honors, while coach Page was named Coach of the Year.
“I couldn’t be more proud of these guys,” Page said. “Give Ball State credit for competing with us all weekend. It is really hard playing as the prohibitive favorite. These guys deserve every honor they were given today. All five guys in the lineup were on the first team, which has never been done before. And as I said at the ceremony, I have to share Coach of the Year honors with associate head coach .”
Holt earned All-Tournament team honors for finishing tied for fourth overall. The MAC’s top golfer had his best round of the tournament on the final day at 68, putting his final score at 1-under par 287. Also in the top 10, last year’s MAC Golfer of the Year finished tied for seventh. Johnson shot a 1-over par 289 for the weekend. On the last day of the tournament, Johnson was 2-over par with a 74.
and each shot a 76 on the final day of the tournament to wrap up the lineup. Petursson finished tied for 19th at 12-over par 300, while senior Whalen finished at 13-over par 301 in a tie for 23rd.
Kent State will take the next two weeks to train for the NCAA Regional Tournament, set for May 15-17 with six possible locations. The Kent State Golden Flashes will find out the seed and destination during the selection show, airing on the Golf Channel on May 4 at noon.