Just when you think the best players in college golf can’t take it any lower in the Amer Ari Intercollegiate, Jackson Koivun, the No. 1-ranked amateur player in the world, and Auburn show up and go really low.
Mauna Lani’s North Course near Waikola Beach in Waimea, Hawaii doesn’t offer a whole lot of resistance to the talented youngsters who show up for this event, a staple on the schedule in the early part of the spring campaign in college golf as the sprint to May’s postseason begins in earnest.
But it got completely out of hand last week when Koivun, ripping off back-to-back 10-under-par 62s in the first two rounds over the 6,913-yard, par-72 North Course layout on his way to a 25-under 191 total, led Auburn to a 77-under 787 total that matched an NCAA record in relation to par.
Auburn, the Southeastern Conference power that has been the top program in college golf with Koivun in the lineup the last two seasons, took control of the Amer Ari with a remarkable 32-under 256 in the opening round, added a 15-under 273 in Friday’s second round and then closed with another spectacular round, a 30-under 258 in Saturday’s final round to take the title by 13 shots over still relatively new SEC rival Texas.
Koivun, a junior from Chapel Hill, N.C., just obliterated the North Course in the first two rounds.
Starting off the eighth tee in the opening round, Koivun made a birdie on the ninth hole and then really went off on the incoming nine at the North Course with a birdie at 10, four straight birdies at 12, 13, 14 and 15 and a birdie at 17 in a 6-under 30 on the back nine.
Koivun then added birdies at the first, second and seventh holes in his opening-round 62.
In Friday’s second round, he did it again. After starting off the 13th tee, Koivun ripped off five straight birdies at the 14th, 15th, 16th, 17th and 18th holes.
After making an eagle at the par-5 second hole, Koivun made birdies at four, seven and 11, that last birdie giving him another 6-under 30 on the incoming nine and another 62.
Koivun’s 20-under total for the first two rounds broke the NCAA’s 36-hole record of 18-under established by that Tiger Woods fella when he was playing for Stanford in the Pac-12 Championship in the spring of 1996.
Koivun settled for a positively pedestrian 5-under 67 in the final round, his 25-under total breaking the program record at Auburn for 54 holes by a whopping seven shots.
Koivun spent a weekend in December in Jupiter, Fla. in a practice session for candidates for the U.S. Walker Cup team that will take on Great Britain & Ireland at Lahinch Golf Club in Ireland in September.
He helped the U.S. claim a closer-than-it-looks 17-9 victory over GB&I in a Walker Cup Match last September at the iconic Cypress Point Club on northern California’s Monterey Peninsula.
The normally biennial competition will come right back in 2026 in order to align the Walker Cup and the Curtis Cup, its female counterpart, together in even years.
Koivun will be on the U.S. team unless he turns pro between now and then, although he certainly seems committed to trying to help Auburn claim a second NCAA crown in three years to go along with the one they won in 2024 at the Omni La Costa Resort & Spa.
Those of us in the Philadelphia area are selfishly hoping we get to see Koivun tee it up in the U.S. Amateur at Merion Golf Club’s historic East Course in August.
The Tigers were No. 1 in the Scoreboard, powered by clppd, rankings for most of the wraparound 2024-2025 college season. They put up a spirited defense of their title before falling to Virginia in the quarterfinals of last spring’s NCAA Championship back at La Costa.
Auburn entered the Amer Ari at No. 5 in the current Scoreboard rankings and its performance at Mauni Lani shouldn’t do anything to hurt its lofty ranking.
Koivun’s closest pursuer was Auburn teammate Cayden Pope, a junior from Lexington, Ky. and No. 77 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) who had a pretty good week at Mauna Lani himself, settling for runnerup honors with a 20-under 196 total.
After opening with a sparkling 7-under 65, Pope added a 4-under 68 in Friday’s second round before closing with a sizzling 9-under 63, even managing to beat Koivun by four shots for co-low-Tiger honors for the day.
Texas, No. 6 in the Scoreboard rankings, set program records for 54 holes in scoring at 800 and relation to par, 64-under, but walked away with runnerup honors, the Longhorns ending up 13 shots behind a rampaging Auburn.
Texas found itself 13 shots behind Auburn despite an opening round of 19-under 269 and gained some ground on the Tigers with a sizzling 24-under 264 in Friday’s second round. But again, despite a strong finishing kick with a 21-under 267, Texas couldn’t catch up with Auburn.
Texas was led by Luke Potter, a senior from Encinitas, Calif. and No. 33 in the WAGR who finished in fourth place with an 18-under 298 total.
Potter only trailed Koivun by a shot after opening with a sizzling 9-under 63 of his own. He added a 7-under 65 in Friday’s second round before closing with a 70.
Two of Koivun’s fellow Longhorns, Tommy Morrison, a senior from Dallas, Texas and No. 10 in the WAGR, and Christiaan Maas, a senior from South Africa and No. 4 in the WAGR – a couple of bombers -- surged into the top 10 in the individual standings with strong finishes that left them among a foursome tied for eighth place at 16-under 200.
Morrison added a 5-under 67 in Friday’s second round to his opening-round 69 before closing with a sizzling 64. Maas added a 6-under 66 in Friday’s second round to his opening-round 69 before finishing strong with a 65 to join his teammate at 16-under.
In its first year in the SEC in 2024-’25, Texas, like Auburn, earned a spot in the match-play bracket in the NCAA Championship at La Costa last spring, falling to SEC rival Florida in the quarterfinals.
Arizona State, No. 7 in the Scoreboard rankings, was another six shots behind Texas in third place with a 58-under 806 total.
The Sun Devils, a runnerup in its first season in the Big 12 last spring, got off to a great start with a 23-under 265 and was only five shots behind Auburn after another strong showing in Friday’s second round with a 19-under 269. Arizona State closed with a 16-under 272.
The Sun Devils were led by Michael Mjaaseth, a senior from Norway and No. 18 in the WAGR as he finished a shot behind Pope in third place in the individual standings with a 19-under 197 total.
Mjaaseth was nearly as good as Koivun in the first two rounds with back-to-back 9-under 63s that left him just two shots behind the eventual champion going into the final round. Mjaaseth closed with a 1-under 71 to get it to 19-under.
Like the top two finishers in the Amer Ari, Arizona State earned a spot in the match-play bracket in the NCAA Championship at La Costa last spring, the Sun Devils suffering a quarterfinal setback at the hands of Mississippi.
Another Big 12 representative, Texas Tech, No. 16 in the Scoreboard rankings, finished in fourth place, a shot behind Arizona State with a 57-under 807 total.
The Red Raiders opened with a sparkling 21-under 267 and added a 14-under 274 in Friday’s second round before closing with a 22-under 266.
Texas Tech was led by Adam Bresnu, a junior from Morocco and No. 54 in the WAGR who finished in a tie for fifth place in the individual standings with Washington’s Jacob Goode, a senior from San Francisco, Calif., and Oregon State’s Nguyen Anh Minh, a freshman from Vietnam, as they all landed on 17-under 199.
After opening with a sparkling 7-under 65, Bresnu recorded back-to-back 67s in the final two rounds.
Texas Tech earned a trip to the NCAA Championship last spring by finishing in fifth place as a four seed in the Urbana Regional. The Red Raiders were in the hunt for a spot in the match-play bracket at La Costa, but came up short in the final round.
Stanford, in its second year in the Atlantic Coast Conference, finished a shot behind Texas Tech in fifth place with a 56-under 808 total. The Cardinal, No. 35 in the Scoreboard rankings, opened with a sizzling 27-under 261 and added a 17-under 271 in Friday’s second rojnd before closing with a 12-under 276.
Stanford was led by Nathan Wang, a senior from Fremont, Calif. who finished in the four-way tie for eighth place with Morrison and Maas of Texas and Pepperdine’s Mahantha Chirravuri, a senior from Chandler, Ariz. and No. 20 in the WAGR, at 16-under.
Wang got off to a great start with a sparkling 7-under 65 and added a 68 in Friday’s second round before closing with a 67.
Stanford failed to advance to the NCAA Championship out of the Amherst Regional as a seven seed last spring.
It was four more shots back to the reigning national champion, Oklahoma State, in sixth place in the 20-team field with a 52-under 812 total.
The Cowboys, the Big 12 champion and No. 11 in the Scoreboard rankings, opened with a 21-under 267, dropped back a little with an 11-under 277 in Friday’s second round and closed with a 20-under 268.
Backing up Koivun and Pope for Auburn was the pair of Jake Albert, a freshman from Blacksburg, Va., and Billy Davis, a sophomore from Spring Valley, Calif., as they finished among the group tied for 20th place at 13-under 203.
Albert opened with a sizzling 8-under 64 and added a 70 in Friday’s second round before closing with a 69. After opening with a solid 5-under 67, Davis, the twin brother of Anna Davis, a standout on the Auburn women’s team, struggled a little with a 1-over 73 in Friday’s second round before finishing with a flourish, matching Pope for low Tiger in the final round with a spectacular 9-under 63.
Rounding out the Auburn lineup was Josiah Gilbert, a junior from Millbrook, Ala. and No. 9 in the WAGR who finished among the group tied for 24th place with a 12-under 204 total. Gilbert sandwiched a 2-over 74 in Friday’s second round with a pair of 7-under 65s.
Nick Clinard, who ran his career total of tournament wins as Auburn head coach to 61, brought along Logan Reilly, a freshman from Lovettsville, Va., to compete as an individual and Reilly was solid, closing with a 6-under 66 to finish in a tie for 31st place with an 11-under 205 total.
Reilly had opened with a 3-under 69 before adding a 70 in Friday’s second round.
Washington’s Goode and Oregon State’s Anh Minh each had three rounds in the 60s, but could do no better than get a share of fifth place with Texas’ Potter at 17-under.
Goode opened with a sparkling 7-under 65 and added a 66 in Friday’s second round before “cooling off” with a final-round 68. Anh Minh also got off to a hot start with a sizzling 8-under 64 and added a 68 in Friday’s second round before closing with a 67.
It was the second tournament of the spring campaign for Pepperdine’s Chirravuri as he had helped the Waves, a perennial West Coast Conference power, capture the team title in last month’s Southwestern Invitational at the North Ranch Country Club in Westlake Village, Calif.
Chirravuri actually had the lead following the opening round as he did Koivun one better with a spectacular 11-under 61. He backed off with a 2-under 70 in Friday’s second round before closing with a 70 to join Texas’ Morrison and Maas and Stanford’s Wang in the tie for eighth place at 16-under.
Pepperdine, No. 4 in the Scoreboard rankings, finished seven shots behind Oklahoma State in seventh place in the team standings with a 45-under 819 total.
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