Men’s Team
The Iowa men’s golf team competed in the Fighting Irish Classic in South Bend, Indiana at Warren Golf Course, shooting 12-over par and earning sixth place in a field of 16 teams. The Hawkeyes saw a stellar performance from third-year Max Tjoa, who turned heads early.
During round one, Tjoa shot a new career-low of 65 that included a hole-in-one on the 143-yard hole four. Fourth-year Gage Messingham carded a one-over par 71 and first-year Grant Gudgel followed one stroke behind at 72. First-year Bennett Warren shot a 75 and second-year Chance Rinkol finished with a 76 to close out round one for the Hawkeyes.
Round two of the tournament was led by Messingham and Warren ,who both shot an even 70, with Messingham carding an eagle on hole 17. Tjoa and Gudgel both carded a 71 and Rinkol finished with a 74 to end day one of the Fighting Irish Classic for Iowa.
“We settled in nice after a slowish start. The guys competed hard from the first hole on,” head coach Tyler Stith told Iowa Athletics. “Max played really nice in the morning round. He continues to improve and gain confidence with each tournament. He put in a lot of work this summer and it’s paying off big time.”
Tjoa once again topped the team in the final round, firing a 68. Gudgel followed one stroke behind at 69 and Messingham shot a 73. Rinkol slotted in a 77 and Warren finished with an 81 to close out the tournament.
Tjoa ended his fantastic tournament by finishing tied for first place with a six-under total score.
Iowa finished tied for sixth alongside Tennessee and Georgia Southern with a team stroke score of 852. UCLA won the tournament with a team stroke score of 833.
Women’s Team
The Iowa women’s golf team traveled west Hutchinson, Kansas and placed 10th out of 14 teams at the Oklahoma Intercollegiate at Prairie Dunes Country Club.
The first round of play faced weather delay, ultimately causing the tournament to be cut from 54 holes to 36.
Third-year Maura Peters carded the Hawkeyes’ lowest score of the first round with a two-over par 72, featuring four birdies. Following Peters was fourth-year Riley Lewis, who shot a 76 with two birdies on the back nine. First-year Sunny Wang scored an 81 and third-year Ximena Benites and fourth-year Shannyn Vogler both shot an 83 with one birdie each to round out the Iowa lineup.
The first round of play was suspended early due to darkness and day two of the tournament began with the players concluding their first rounds. After all the first rounds were concluded, the second round was underway.
Shannyn Vogler led Iowa in the second round with a 73 that included back-to-back birdies on holes 6 and 7. Ximena Benites followed Vogler with a score of 77 and Riley Lewis was just one shot behind with a 76. Sunny Wang slotted in a 77 and Maura Peters shot an 81 to close out the tournament for the Hawkeyes.
Peters was Iowa’s best finisher at 41 with a total score of 13-over with Lewis just one stroke behind.
Iowa battled in the rainy conditions and ultimately finished tied for 10th with Abilene Christian with a team stroke score of 619. Florida came out victorious with a team stroke score of 573.
Up Next
The men’s side’s next tournament will be the Moraine Collegiate in Dayton, Ohio on Oct. 13-14. The Iowa women’s golf team will travel to West Point, Mississippi to compete in The Ally on Oct. 20-22.