The UW-Eau Claire men’s golf team competed at 12:30 on April 16 at the Bobby Krig Invite in Le Sueur, Minn. The event was hosted by Gustavus Adolphus College.

The men’s golf team started their season at the beginning of Sept. with a total of 18 competitions so far. The team stopped playing in Oct. due to weather and they restarted their season on April 1.

The Bobby Krig Invite was scheduled to begin on April 15 and continue into April 16. However, the invite was canceled for April 15, leading to only one round played on April 16.

According to the results page, the men’s golf team tied for third with a total of 310 overall. With only one round of play, this ranking put UW-Eau Claire in the top five for their past two competitions according to event recap.

Darrin Skinner, the head coach for the men’s and women’s golf team, said that this season has been different as three seniors left this last season and the team only consists of 10 individuals.

“It’s been a learning year. We’re much younger than we’ve been in the past,” Skinner said.

The Blugold athletes that participated in this Invite include Owen Covey who shot a 75, Mason Gardner who shot a 76, Carson Brock who shot 77, Fred Moede with 82, Matt Fladten with 83 and Sean Murphy who shot 85.

UW-Eau Claire had three golfers rank in the top 15 out of 58 competitors. Covey tied for fourth with five other golfers, Gardner tied for ninth with five other competitors and Brock tied for fourteenth with four other golfers.

The Bobby Krig Invite was played by the men’s golf B-team, which means that this was the last competition for these Blugolds. The A-team will be playing their last tournament this upcoming weekend.

“I had two seniors and this was their last tournament that they will be competing in,” Skinner said. “It’s a sad time and it’s a happy time. They’ve had four years here.”

The next and final scheduled competition for the men’s golf team is the Saint John’s University, or SJU, Spring Invitational according to the Blugold athletic page. The Invitational will be held on April 23 and 24, but the competition times still need to be determined.

The SJU Spring Invitational on Saturday, April 23 is at Blackberry Ridge Golf Course in Sartell, Minn. The second day of competition on April 24 is at Monticello Country Club in Monticello, Minn., about a fifty minute driving distance according to Google maps.

The National Collegiate Athletics Association, or NCAA, for DIII men’s golf competition is scheduled to be on May 2. This competition holds 38 teams total and UW-Eau Claire is not set up to be invited as a team.

However, according to Skinner, there is a chance that Cole Jahnke may be invited to attend. Based on his performance at the SJU Spring Invitational, Jahnke could qualify as he is ranked in the top 50 in the country.

To follow the Blugolds at the SJU Invitational or in the future, viewers can follow along on Blugold Game Day or on the UW-Eau Claire Blugold app.

Fisher can be reached at [email protected].