The No. 13 Kenyon men’s golf team traveled to Greensboro, North Carolina, to compete in the Gate City Invitational on Monday and Tuesday. Though the Owls struggled in the first round, they finished in 12th place in a field of 18 of the nation’s top teams.
Adrian Jordan ’28 paced Kenyon in the first round, shooting a team-best 3-under par. Will Hulsey ’26 and Jaiden Koonar ’27 each carded a 74 to end the round 2-over. Jon Oakes ’27 shot a 77, and Armand Ouellette ’25 rounded out the Owls’ first-day scores with an 81. After a difficult first round, Kenyon sat in 15th place. Though the Owls were down, they certainly were not out.
Oakes led Kenyon’s turnaround in round two by shooting 7-under. He credited his improvement to learning from his difficulties in the first round. “I was struggling with tee shots early in round one, but was able to recognize what was causing the misses after the first 10 holes,” he wrote in an email to the Collegian. “Toward the end of round one going into round two, I was in position more on each hole, which led to more birdie chances, and I started making more putts as a result.” Both Hulsey and Ouellette improved in the second round, as they shot 73s. Koonar and Jordan shot 76 and 77, respectively, in the second round. By the end of the day, Kenyon still sat in 15th place after shooting 1-under on the round.
On Tuesday, Hulsey was Kenyon’s low man, shooting a 3-under in the third round. Hulsey’s drive came from helping the team climb in the standings. “My success came from the fact that I was able to turn things around after a tough start to round two,” he wrote in a message to the Collegian. “My main motivation was to come back to help the team score, and I was eventually able to close the tournament out well.” Oakes, Jordan and Ouellette were all at par on Tuesday, and Koonar shot a 73.
Oakes ended the tournament tied for 21st place with a score of 214. Hulsey finished two strokes behind him to earn a share of 29th place. Jordan shot 2-over for the tournament to finish in a tie for 45th place. Koonar and Ouellette earned shares of 73rd and 80th place, respectively, to help the Owls earn a team score of 866. Hulsey was proud of how Kenyon responded to its early struggles. “We battled back from mistakes really well in North Carolina,” he said. “We all had our fair share of setbacks, but we showed that we can reset and turn things around after a few bad holes. That takes a lot of experience and maturity to be able to do, and I’m proud of these guys for bouncing back.”
Kenyon will return to the links on Oct. 13 to compete in the Golfweek Invitational in Miramar Beach, Florida. Oakes emphasized the importance of opening the tournament strongly. “We need to get off to a better start and hold onto the momentum. The earlier you can settle into a round and calm your nerves the better,” he said. “Golfweek will be another field of the top [Division III] programs in the country so a strong start is what we’re looking for.”