GRAND HAVEN, Michigan – The Kentucky men’s golf team put in a strong showing Wednesday, carding a 286 final-round team score to tie for sixth at the Folds of Honor Collegiate at American Dunes Golf Club in Grand Haven, Michigan. The 2-over-par 286 was the second-best of any team in the 18-team field, only behind tournament champion Notre Dame, which shot a 2-under 282 to overcome an eight-shot deficit to Michigan State in the final round.
The Irish won the tournament at 8-over-par, followed by second-place Michigan State a shot back, Arkansas at 11-over, South Carolina at 15-over, Arizona at 18-over and the Cats and Memphis tied for sixth at 19-over for the three days.
“I’m so proud of our guys for finishing this tournament the right way,” Kentucky head coach Gator Todd said. “We talked last night that it matters and they made a decision to climb up the leaderboard in challenging conditions. Days like today will give us confidence down the road. This week was a great experience for our entire team. We look forward to getting back to work and preparing for the SEC Fall Preview.”
Graduate Alex Goff finished in a four-way tie for second at even-par, a shot back of medalist Cecil Belisle of Kansas, after carding a trio of birdies against four bogeys for a 1-over 72 in the final round. The tournament marked Goff’s 11th-career top-10 finish and 22nd in the top 20. The Kings Mountain, North Carolina, native has been on a tear since the start of 2023, finishing tied or solo second four times in his last eight tournaments while posting a finish outside the top 20 just once in that span.
“Alex played outstanding golf all week and is continuing to prove he’s one of the best players in the country,” Todd said. “He was in contention the entire day and will be more comfortable next time in he’s in that situation.”
Senior Campbell Kremer put together a phenomenal showing since midway through his first round Monday to tie for 16th at 4-over after carding three birdies against three bogeys for an even-par 71 final round. After a 7-over-par start through his first 10 holes of the tournament, Kremer played his final 44 holes in 3-under to notch his fourth-career top 20. The even-par final round marked the 23rd round of par-or-better in his Wildcat career.
“Campbell played as well as anybody in the field the final 45 holes,” Todd said of the senior. “He stepped up in a big way the final two rounds.”
Redshirt freshman Solomon Petrie carded a 1-over 72 in the final round, carding three birdies against four birdies to tie for 37th at 8-over while freshman Michael Hake bounced back from a difficult second round to tie for 45th at 10-over for the event after an even-par final round in which he offset three bogeys with a trio of birdies.
Todd also was impressed by the effort of his two freshman.
“Solomon was steady all day,” Todd added. “I’m proud of the toughness he showed this week without his best ball-striking and Michael showed resilience bouncing back from a tough round yesterday. It was a great learning experience for him this week in his first college tournament.”
Junior transfer Jansen Preston rounded out the UK lineup in a tie for 58th after a 7-over 78 in the final round.
“Jansen carried us the first round,” Todd said of the Vanderbilt transfer and Lexington native. “Although he didn’t have his best stuff the last two days, I’m proud of the way he handled himself.”
Goff tied for best in the 90-competitor field in par-5 scoring at 6-under-par while tying for the second-most birdies with 12. Petrie tied for fifth in the field with 37 pars while Kremer notched the Cats’ lone eagle of the week, an ace on the 192-yard par-3 12th hole in the opening round to turn around his season-opening event.
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