Men's Golf: SDSU's Tyler Kowack Wins William H. Tucker Intercollegiate
Kowack fired a 5-under 67 on the par-72, 7,546-yard UNM Championship Course to win the event at 11-under 205.
Junior Tyler Kowack (Del Mar, Calif./La Jolla HS) holed out for eagle on the par-4, 428-yard sixth hole to become the second San Diego State men's golfer to win an event this fall as he captured medalist honors at the William H. Tucker Intercollegiate Tuesday in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Entering the day in a tie for sixth place out of 104 competitors, Kowack fired a 5-under 67 on the par-72, 7,546-yard UNM Championship Course to win the event at 11-under 205. Starting his final round on the sixth hole in the shotgun start format, Kowack was 4-under through his first 16 holes before bogeying the par-5, 492-yard fifth. Facing a roughly 100-yard second shot into an elevated pin on the sixth, however, Kowack spun a lob wedge back five feet from the hole into the cup for what proved to be a walk-off winner.
It was the first collegiate win for Kowack and second victory by an Aztec through three fall events this season, joining a Justin Hastings (Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands) win at the Maui Jim Intercollegiate (Sept. 8-10). An SDSU golfer now has individual wins in three of the last five tournaments, including Dylan Oyama (Carlsbad, Calif./Pacific Ridge HS) at the 2023 Mountain West Championship, and Hastings and Kowack this fall.
The 205 was a 54-hole collegiate low for Kowack, who opened with an even-par 72 and a 6-under 66 on Monday. Kowack shot a final round 67 when the average score for the field was 74.00, edging out the Texas Tech duo of Calum Scott and Tyran Snyders by a stroke (-10).
San Diego State finished third in the 20-team field at 14-under 850. Tournament host New Mexico won the team event at -29 with Texas Tech three back at -26. San Francisco (-12) and UNLV (-11) rounded out the top 5.
Junior Shea Lague (Jamul, Calif./Steele Canyon HS) slipped from a tie for second to a tie for 18th on the final day after carding a 5-over 77 and finishing at 2-under 214. Lague had two birdies on the day, five bogeys and a double bogey on the par-4, 377-yard 17th.
Hastings and sophomore Chanachon Chokprajakchat (Bangkok, Thailand) each tied for 31st at even-par. Hastings recorded a 2-under 70 in his final round to move up 18 places. He was 1-over through his first 11 holes but sank four birdies over his next six before ending with a bogey on the par-4, 520-yard seventh.
Chokprajakchat, meanwhile, shot a 1-over 73 today, which featured an eagle on the par-5, 544-yard 18th, two birdies and five bogeys.
Oyama came in a tie for 68th at 8-over 224 in his first event of the season following a 77 today, while senior Skyler Ngo (Las Vegas) tied for 78th at +10 while competing as an individual after a 77 on Tuesday.
SDSU wraps up its fall slate at the prestigious Jackson T. Stephens Cup, Oct. 9-11, at Trinity Forest Golf Club in Dallas.
William H. Tucker Intercollegiate
Albuquerque, N.M.
Day Two Results
UNM Championship Course
Par 72, 7,546
Team Standings (Top 5 of 20)
1. New Mexico…280-280-275—835 (-29)
2. Texas Tech…278-280-280—838 (-26)
3. San Diego State…289-274-287—850 (-14)
4. San Francisco…283-279-290—852 (-12)
5. UNLV…278-289-286—853 (-11)
Individual Leaders (Top 6 of 104 players + SDSU)
1. Tyler Kowack (San Diego State)…72-66-67—205 (-11)
T2. Calum Scott (Texas Tech)…69-70-67—206 (-10)
T2. Tyran Snyders (Texas Tech)…67-68-71—206 (-10)
T4. Bastien Amat (New Mexico)…67-72-68—207 (-9)
T4. Jakob Melin (San Francisco)…72-65-70—207 (-9)
T4. Albert Boneta (New Mexico)…69-68-70—207 (-9)
T18. Shea Lague (San Diego State)…71-66-77—214 (-2)
T31. Justin Hastings (San Diego State)…75-71-70—216 (E)
T31. Chanachon Chokprajakchat (San Diego State)…71-72-73—216 (E)
T68. Dylan Oyama (San Diego State)…76-71-77—224 (+8)
T78. ^Skyler Ngo (San Diego State)…74-75-77—226 (+10)
^ competing as an individual
