Augusta men finish eighth in Haskins Award tournament; Texas wins title with record performance

By Madison Keel | Sports writer

Augusta University finished eighth in the Augusta Haskins Award Invitational men’s collegiate golf tournament at Forest Hills Golf Course on Sunday, April 3.

The Jaguars were led by Jack Vajda, who finished with a 1-under-par 215 to tie for 21st. Vajda shot 72, 71 and 72 for the 54-hole event at 7,086-yard, par-72 Forest Hills layout.

“There was some strong parts in my game and some weak parts, but overall it was a great event for me,” Vajda said. 

The Augusta University men’s team competed against 14 other teams.

“We played well,” Vajda said. “It was not the finish we all wanted maybe, but competing against the best teams in Division I is a great indicator on how we stack up, so it was great to see.”

Texas won the team championship by 26 strokes over second-place Oklahoma State. The Longhorns established a tourney record for their 50-under-par 814 team total. It was also a school record for a 54-hole event.

Pierceson Coody, grandson of 1971 Masters champion Charles Coody, was the medalist at 17 under par (199). Coody was playing for the first time since breaking his arm back in the fall. He had a 67-66-66 tournament for the Longhorns.

Evan Lewis of South Carolina and Taichi Kho of Notre Dame tied for second at 205.

In the team competition, the Jaguars finished two shots behind seventh-place Northwestern and four behind sixth-place Alabama. AU shot a 6-over-par 870.

CJ van Wyk and Hampus Wijkstrom finished tied for second among AU golfers at 221, followed by Alex van Wyk at 223. Gareth Steyn was next at 224.

Augusta’s next tournament will be in the Southland Conference championship in McKinney, Texas, on April 25-27. This is the Jaguars’ first year in the Southland, as they moved over from the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference where they had dominated.

“That’s a massive event for us and winning it continues our season, so we are looking forward to some practice and a good result there as well,” Vajda said.

Contact Madison Keel at mkeel@augusta.edu.

AU’s Gareth Steyn drives the ball during the Augusta Haskins Award Invitational at Forest Hills. At the top of the page, Alex van Wyk shows his driving form. (photos by Madison Keel)

Hampus Wijkstrom lines up a putt for the Jaguars during the Augusta Haskins Award Invitational. (photo by Madison Keel)