The Oklahoma State Cowboys saved their best golf for the last day of the Augusta Haskins Award Invitational and walked away with the team title after firing an 18-under par score of 270 on Sunday at Forest Hills Golf Club, edging Pepperdine by two strokes.
The third-ranked Cowboys, who began the day in second place 11 strokes behind the Waves, counted four subpar rounds by Aman Gupta (66), Jonas Baumgartner (66), Eugenio Chacarra (67) and Rasmus Neergaard-Peterson (71) to earn their second straight tournament victory and third team title of the season.
South Carolina’s Ryan Hall edged Pepperdine’s Dylan Menante on the second playoff hole to earn the individual title after both players finished the 54-hole event tied at 14-under 202. Hall trailed by a stroke heading into his final hole of the day, the par-5 ninth. After coming up just short on his second shot, Hall’s chip found the bottom of the cup for an eagle and for a final round 64 and a one stroke lead. He then watched anxiously as Menante just missed his own eagle try for the win.
After both players matched birdies on the first playoff hole, Hall claimed the individual title with a birdie on the 11th while Menante could only muster a par.
Hall, who began the day in seventh place, made up a six-stroke deficit with five birdies two eagles to earn his second career individual title. The junior from Knoxville, Tenn., played his final 36 holes in regulation 14 under par and added two more birdies in the playoff. After an opening round 72, Hall moved into contention with a six-under 66 in the second round on Saturday before blistering the Forest Hills layout with a closing 64 on Sunday.
With the win, Hall earned an automatic exemption into the PGA TOUR’s 3M Open, July 22-25 in Blaine, Minn.
For Menante, it was his second playoff loss of the season, having previously fallen to teammate Joshua McCarthy in the Pasadera Collegiate Invitational. His 14-under 202 was the sixth-best 54-hole score in Pepperdine history.Blue. Collar. Player. 👷♂️
— Gamecock M. Golf (@GamecockMGolf) April 4, 2021
Another angle of the winning putt at 10. When you know you know... 🚶🤣#Gamecocks🐔⛳️ // #ForeverToThee pic.twitter.com/qBuB5JtMP5
The tournament turned into a two-team race between the Cowboys and Waves on Sunday. Playing without All-American Austin Eckroat who was competing at the PGA’s Valero Texas Open in San Antonio, the Cowboys relied on their outstanding depth and strong play from Charcarra, Gupta and Jonas-Baumgartner to make up 11-strokes on the Waves.
Chacarra had six birdies on his card en route to a final round 67 and finished two strokes behind Hall and Menante. Gupta carded a final round 66 to jump eight spots up the leaderboard into fourth place while Baumgartner climbed 21 spots into a tie for eighth place after a posting matching Gupta with his own 66.
Pepperdine and South Carolina and Oklahoma State Athletics contributed to this report.