PREVIEW AND LIVE SCORING: 2025 Amer Ari Invitational
February 6, 2025 | by Justin Golba of AmateurGolf.com
see also: Jackson Koivun, View results for The Amer Ari Invitational, Mauna Lani Resort Golf Course - North Course
Arizona State, Auburn, North Carolina, Texas and others will tee it up in Hawaii this week
After a historic 2024 tournament, the Amer Ari Invitational is back from Feb. 6 to Feb. 8, 2025, at Mauna Lani Resort Golf Course, the North Course, in Kamuela, HI.
Since its inception in 1991, the Amer Ari Intercollegiate has brought some of the best golfers in the nation to the west side of the Big Island year in and year out. From Tiger Woods to Jordan Spieth to Matt Kuchar, the Amer Ari Intercollegiate has hosted the top names in the sport.
According to Hilo Athletics, originally titled "Taylor Made Big Island Intercollegiate Golf Tournament" and co-hosted by Hawai‘i Hilo and UH Manoa, the event was played at the Waikoloa Beach Resort with other venues at the Hapuna Golf Course at Mauna Kea Resort before moving to Mauna Lani in 2024. In 2010, it was renamed in honor of longtime supporter Amer Ari.
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Last year
In just his second collegiate start, Arizona State freshman and 2022 US Junior Amateur champion Wenyi Ding shot a historic 27-under 189 with rounds of 63-64-62, becoming the first player to break 190 in collegiate competition. He beat the previously lowest-known score of 192, which several players, including fellow Sun Devil Jon Rahm, held.
Ding recorded a nine-stroke victory and was nearly 22 strokes better than the field average at Mauna Lani’s North Course.
North Carolina won the team title by five shots as Arizona State finished in solo second place.
2025 teams
Arizona State Sun Devils
Auburn Tigers
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
(D-II) Hawai‘i Hilo Vulcans
North Carolina Tarheels
Oklahoma State Cowboys
Oregon Ducks
Oregon State Beavers
Osaka Gakuin
Pacific Tigers
Pepperdine Waves
San Jose State Spartans
Stanford Cardinal
Texas Longhorns
Texas Tech Red Raiders
UC Davis Aggies
UCLA Bruins
UH Manoa Rainbow Warriors
Waseda
Washington Huskies
Notable players
Daniel Bennett of Texas, David Ford of North Carolina, Josele Ballester of Arizona State, Christiaan Maas of Texas, Tommy Morrison of Texas, Connor Williams of Arizona State, Josiah Gilbert of Auburn, Pablo Ereno of UCLA, Ethan Fang of Oklahoma State, Omar Morales of UCLA, Jackson Koivun of Auburn, and Brendan Valdes of Auburn are all some of the top names teeing it up this week.
Koivun is the highest ranked player in the field, ranked No. 6 in the Golfweek/AmateurGolf.com World Rankings.
Past champions
Notah Begay, Anthony Kim, Tyler Leon, Cameron Tringale, Jonathan Moore, Nick Taylor, Jordan Niebrugge, CT Pan, Justin Suh, David Puig, Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra, Todd Demsey, Troy Matteson, Aaron Wise, and Matthew Wolff.
2023 match
In 2023, because of high winds, the tournament was canceled and replaced by the ACC/Big 12 Showdown. Reigning NCAA champion Texas took down Georgia Tech 4-1-1 while Texas Tech and UNC tied
The showcase match was between Ludvig Aberg of Texas Tech and David Ford of North Carolina
The course
Since opening in 1981, the Mauna Lani golf courses have collected numerous “best courses you can play” awards from Golfweek, Golf Digest and GOLF Magazine. Mauna Lani’s award-winning South Course formerly hosted the prestigious Hawai`i State Open and was the site of the Senior Skins Game from 1990 to 2000, hosting many of golf’s greats, including Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Lee Trevino, Chi Chi Rodriquez, and Gary Player.
Recently the Mauna Lani South Course as the ‘No. 1 Golf Course in the U.S.’ by users of GolfPass, the digital platform that brings golfers together with the best golf courses, instruction, entertainment, travel information. GolfPass also recognized Mauna Lani’s South Course as the No. 1 golf course in Hawaii and the North Course the No. 11 in the Aloha State. The rankings were determined from more than 315,000 ratings and reviews in 2022.
Hilo Athletics and David Tenneson contributed to this report
Results: The Amer Ari Invitational
| Place | Player | Location | Pts | Scores |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dallas, TX | 800 | 67-65-63=195 | |
| 2 | Cary, NC | 500 | 67-61-67=195 | |
| 3 | Plano, TX | 400 | 64-67-67=198 | |
| 3 | York, PA | 400 | 68-66-64=198 | |
| 5 | San Diego, CA | 400 | 63-67-69=199 |
About the The Amer Ari Invitational
The Amer Ari Intercollegiate -- hosted by the University of Hawaii-Hilo -- has brought some of the best golfers in the nation to the west side of the Big Island annually since its inception in 1992. From Tiger Woods to Jordan Spieth to Matt Kuchar, t...
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