Akina concluded Puerto Rico Open tied for 16th

RIO GRANDE, Puerto Rico — Freshman BYU golfer Kihei Akina (68-70-70-70–278) closed out the Puerto Rico Open with a share of 16th at 10-under par at Grand Reserve Golf Club Sunday. 

“This was a solid week for Kihei,” director of golf Todd Miller said. “The great thing for him is that it wasn’t his best golf. He has a lot more in the tank which shows he can compete on tour. Everyone we played with came up to me and said, ‘you have a heck of a player.’”

With Miller as his caddie for the event, Akina picked up his best finish in any of his five professional starts he made in his career. The freshman made his first cut in three PGA Tour starts on Friday, then went on to post two consecutive 2-under-par rounds on Saturday and Sunday. This helped give Akina his first top-25 finish in a professional setting. 

Akina was fourth in the field in scrambling, going 19-for-22 in those opportunities, and he carded the second most pars on the week with 54.

"It was a lot of fun to compete for four days in an awesome place," Akina said. "My game feels good, and I’m looking to continue the good going into the rest of the season while still improving. I'm excited to tee it up tomorrow and play with my boys."

“As we walked down the 14th fairway, I told him how grateful I am to spend the week with him helping him chase his dreams,” Miller said. “I really enjoyed getting to coach and caddie this week in Puerto Rico.”

Zac Blair (71-68-68-70–277) was another Cougar representative in the third and fourth rounds. The BYU alum ended up one stroke ahead of Akina for a tie for eighth place. This marked the 2012 third team All-American’s 13th top-10 finish in his PGA career. 

Akina will have little time to rest, as he will fly to San Diego to compete in the R.E. Lamkin Invitational beginning Monday at 8:45 a.m. MDT.