Men’s golf takes third at William H. Tucker Invitational behind Akina’s fourth-place finish

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — No. 24 BYU men’s golf finished third at 21-under par Saturday at the William H. Tucker Invitational at the UNM Championship Course.

Kihei Akina (67-70-69–206) tied for fourth at 10 under, recording back-to-back top-five finishes to begin the season. Freshman Drake Harvey (69-75-67–211) tied for 15th at 5 under as the only other Cougar to finish in the top 25.

“This was a solid performance by our guys,” head coach Todd Miller said. “We led the field in par-3 scoring, which usually gives you a chance to win the tournament, but we didn’t make enough birdies to match San Diego State.”

Akina carded a 3-under 69 in the final round, highlighted by seven birdies. Opening on the fifth hole, the sophomore made three consecutive birdies on Nos. 7-9. On the back nine, three consecutive bogeys on Nos. 11-13 moved him back to even par, but he responded with birdies on Nos. 15, 16, 18 and 1. After a bogey on No. 3, Akina finished the round at 3 under to lead the Cougars.

Harvey fired a career-low 5-under 67 in the final round. He made six birdies and one bogey to record the first top-15 finish of his career.

Parker Bunn (71-75-71–217) tied for 45th at 1 over after carding a 1-under 71 in the final round.

In their season debuts, seniors Angus Klintworth (74-72-72–218) and Peter Kim (71-69-78–218) finished at 2 over and tied for 50th. Klintworth carded an even-par 72 in the final round, while Kim fired a 6-over 78.

Competing as an individual, Austin Shelley (72-72-72–216) shot an even-par 72 in the final round to tie for 35th at even par.

“Everyone on the team made a nice contribution,” Miller said. “Kihei was solid throughout the entire tournament. Drake played incredibly well in the final round. Parker, Angus and Austin were very consistent, and Peter came up big for us in the first two rounds.”

San Diego State (277-284-272–833) won the team title at 31 under, while No. 15 New Mexico (275-286-278–839) finished second at 25 under. UNLV (292-283-269–844) took fourth at 20 under, and Santa Clara (280-277-289–846) rounded out the top five at 18 under.

BYU will head to Salt Lake City to compete in Big 12 Match Play at Salt Lake Country Club on Oct. 12-14.