No lead is safe when the wind blows off Lake Michigan at Whistling Straits. Just ask the North Carolina A&T State University women’s golf team, which held on in the final round for the narrowest of victories in the PGA WORKS Collegiate Championship (PWCC) presented by Chase and Kohler on May 7 in Kohler, Wisconsin.
Facing wind gusts up to 30 miles-per-hour, their 15-stroke lead over Howard University in the Women’s Team Division dwindled throughout the day on the Irish Course. With only two holes remaining, that lead was gone and N.C. A&T (70-over) trailed Howard by one.
But a clutch birdie from junior Polina Marina on the final hole, the par-5 18th, proved crucial and despite a finishing double bogey from junior Ekaterina Prokhorov – the 36-hole Women’s Team Division Medalist leader – the Aggies won by one.
“Still trying to process it all,” said N.C. A&T Head Coach Scooter Clark, PGA, about his 11th PWCC victory as a coach. “It was neat to see them go through that today and hold on to pull it off.”
Clark has seen every side of the PWCC: as a competitor in the inaugural (1986) championship, as Bethune-Cookman Head Coach, as Championship Director for the PGA of America and now back as a Head Coach.
“Seeing the pride and sense of accomplishment on a student athlete’s face, it’s a great moment,” added Clark.
Howard University (71-over) finished runner-up in the Women’s Team Division, while Alabama State University (112-over) took third.
Despite a final-round 10-over 82, Prokhorova claimed Medalist Honors by finishing 10-over for the Championship and three strokes ahead of teammate Marina (13-over, 77-68-84).
“I believed in myself and I believed in my teammates. I just tried to keep my head in the right spot,” said Prokhorova.
A playoff was necessary in the Women’s Individual Division after University of Delaware freshman Hyunji Kim defeated University of Nebraska- Lincoln senior Miu Takhashi on the first extra hole.
“I was really nervous and shaking in the cold,” said Kim. “Now that it’s over, it’s just been an incredible opportunity.” Kim’s win wasn’t the only victory for the University of Delaware during the week as classmate Egor Zubov (6-under) won the Men’s Individual Division with rounds of 67-67-76—210. This marked the first time both men’s and women’s PWCC individual winners have been from the same school since Bethune-Cookman in 2000.
Berenguel leads Golden Lions
It was a debut to remember for the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) men’s golf team at Whistling Straits.
Competing in its first PGA WORKS Collegiate Championship presented by Chase and Kohler, UAPB captured the title in dominating fashion. The Golden Lions (23-over) recorded a wire-to-wire victory as the Men’s Division I Champions, combining to shoot a final-round 28-over-par 316 on the Straits Course and win by 32 over Prairie View A&M University (55-over) and North Carolina A&T State University (55-over), which tied for second.
“Having the opportunity to play this iconic golf course and winning the championship means a lot,” said UAPB sophomore Jose Berenguel. “Hard work paid off.”
Berenguel clinched the Men’s Division I medalist title with a three-day score of 7-under-par 209. With a 2-over-par 74 in the final round, he scored a 10-stroke victory.
In the Men’s Division II Championship, Texas A&M International University (TAMIU) Coach Parker Holekamp’s message to his team was simple: Keep your head on straight. If the Dust Devils could stay focused amidst the windy conditions at Whistling Straits, Holekamp liked their chances in Wednesday’s final round.
TAMIU (60-over) followed their coach’s instructions to put up a final-round team score of 32-over-par 320, giving them a seven-stroke win over second-place Fayetteville State University (67-over).
“I feel really honored to be able to come play a championship like this at this quality of a golf course,” said Holekamp. “The guys grinded it out.”
Kentucky State University senior Micah Stangebye (2-over) went wire-to-wire to win the Men’s Division II Medalist honors.
University of Delaware senior Egor Zubov (6-under) captured the Men’s Individual Championship title with a final-round 4-over-par 76 at the Straits course.
Zubov, playing in his final collegiate event, opened with a birdie at the par-4 first. After a bogey at the par-4 No. 4 hole, he responded with another birdie at the par-5 fifth. Despite a double bogey on the par-4 eighth and three-back nine bogeys, he maintained his three-stroke lead with six pars on the closing holes to win.
“Today, coming in knowing that there was going to be a lot of wind, I started off well, but in the midst of it the wind got harder,” said Zubov. “I made a few key mistakes in some sense, but was able to quickly adapt.”