TUCSON, Ariz. – BYU (270-272-272–814) finished in first place in the Arizona N.I.T. at OMNI Tucson National on Tuesday afternoon, carding the lowest 54-hole team score to par of the 21st century by shooting 50-under par.
“We wanted to show that we are a top team in the country,” Simon Kwon said. “The last three weeks we have been grinding in our facility to prove that we could beat anyone in the country.”
Kwon (68-68-67–203) climbed the leaderboard in his final round to finish runner-up to Iowa State’s Paul Beauvy in the individual competition. The Salt Lake native’s 13-under marks a new career best. Kwon recorded six birdies in the final round, totaling 18 birdies in three rounds, tied for the most out of any player in the field.
“The weeks leading up to this tournament were filled with great practices as a team,” said Peter Kim. “We were competitive and intense, playing a bunch of up-and-down chipping matches with pressure. There were a few hiccups this week, but overall we were dialed in and stuck to our game plan.”
Kim (66-69-69–204) recorded his second top-3 finish of the season after going 12-under to tie for third place. The sophomore’s two eagles put him in a tie for the most at the event. Kim carded 17 birdies to maintain his spot on the leaderboard.
Senior Cole Ponich (70-66-69–205) also recorded a career-low 54-hole score after going 11-under throughout the event. Like Kim, he made two eagles to help him finish tied for fifth, his second top-5 finish of the season.
China native Kevin Wu shot a 9-under 207 with rounds of 66-69-72 to help him finish tied for eighth place. Wu tied with Kwon for the most made birdies (18) in Tucson this week.
Zac Jones made eight birdies in his final round, to boost himself to 36th place, almost 20 spots ahead of where he left off through 36 holes. The senior finished the tournament 2-under with rounds of 72-75-67.
As a team, the Cougars carded the most birdies and eagles out of the field.
Arizona (275-275-278–828) finished in second place, 14 strokes behind the Cougars. New Mexico State (273-288-273–834) rounded out the top three.