The men’s golf team recently finished their first tournament of the semester.
The Stars competed in the Houston Classic tournament Jan. 9 at the Golf Club of Houston in Humble, TX.
The Stars placed second behind Southwestern Christian, shooting 310-302-310-922 on the par-71, 6,945-yard layout.
David Meyers, mass communications senior, placed first individually. He secured the victory with a 71-69-67-207. Bosten Benn, business administration freshman, tied for eighth place with a score of 79-75-80-234. Robbie Sager, business marketing freshman, scored 79-81-80-240. Will Fore, university studies junior, placed 16th with an 81-80-83-244. Mason Mikeska, business management junior, finished with an 85-78-90-253. Ben Thionnet, business management freshman, scored 84-86-85-255.
Meyers won the tournament with a 10-shot margin of victory. His score also dipped below 70 for the eighth time in ten rounds this season.
“It was an awesome week. My game was good, and everything felt good,” Meyers said.
Meyers’s win moved him into second place on OCU’s career victory list. With eight wins, his career has exceeded Tyrone van Aswegan, who had seven wins from 2000-2004. The top place belongs to Rupert Kaminsky, who secured 9 victories from 2015-2018. Van Aswegan also made the PGA tour in 2013. All three hail from Johannesburg, South Africa.
Meyers said he is thrilled to be included on the career victory list.
“There are a lot of pro golfers that have come out of the program, so it makes it that much more special,” Meyers said.
Meyers said he and Kaminsky often joke about his goal to break the overall record.
“It’s actually one of my friends who holds the overall record, so we have a bit of banter going back and forth,” said Meyers.
The 2020-2021 season marks Meyers’ last semester before graduating.
“Oklahoma City has been an awesome place to spend my college career and play golf,” he said. “I’ve loved every bit of it.”
The team prepared for the season by practicing individually over break, then starting qualifying practices and workouts once they returned to campus.
“The top five scores from the qualifiers are the ones who go and compete in the tournaments,” Benn said.
Due to COVID-19 protocols, there have been some changes in the way the team practices and travels, including wearing masks and social distancing.
“You’re not quite as close with the team, but you can still spend time with them,” Benn said.
Benn said the team is excited to have the opportunity to travel to tournaments this season after not being allowed last season due to COVID-19 concerns.
Meyers said the team bonds over their collective season goal: winning the Sooner Athletic Conference Championships April 26-27 in Ardmore, Okla., and the NAIA Championships May 18-21 in Silvis, Ill.
“We’re all hoping and wanting to win nationals at the end of the year,” Meyers said.
The Stars will next compete in the Texas Intercollegiate March 8-9 at Hawks Creek Golf Club in Westworth Village, Tex.
For more men’s golf updates, students can visit the OCUSports website, and the MediaOCU sports page.
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