Following a rough start to the year at the Amer Ari Invitational, the Oregon men’s golf team finished fourth out of a field of 24 teams at The Prestige tournament at PGA West in La Quinta, California. Aiden Krafft finished first among all players in the tournament with a scoreline of 69-68 (-5) and took home individual medalist honors, bringing home the team’s first piece of hardware this year. The third round of the tournament was cancelled due to weather conditions, which secured the first-place finish for Krafft. 

“Aiden displayed a ton of maturity during brutal conditions yesterday,” Oregon head coach Casey Martin said. “He played beautifully.”

Kyreece Romero finished tied for 16th with a score of 72-71 (+1). Romero has been quiet so far this season after not competing in the last three tournaments and placing tied for 65th at The Tindall in September.

Casper Nerpin and Sebastian Desoisa were close behind, placing tied for 19th and tied for 29th, respectively. Nerpin scored for a total of 144 (+2) with Desoisa a stroke behind at 145 (+3). 

Sophomore Tim Chang, who finished 117th with a score of 159 (+17), had his worst performance of the year, but his score did not count toward the Ducks’ team score, with only the top four scores counting. This comes after Chang finished 70th out of 122 at the Amer Ari, third worst among Oregon players. 

Oregon (+1) finished six strokes behind No. 28 Stanford, which placed first with a team score of five under par. The Ducks fourth-place finish was ahead of seven teams ranked in the top 50, including No. 25 Wake Forest.

Among all 24 teams, the Ducks finished with a 2.95 average on par 3’s, the best in the tournament, with Krafft leading the team with a 2.50 average.

“The Prestige was a great event for us,” Martin said. “The team did well playing in strong wind. We needed this confidence boost very badly and are excited to get back out there.”

The Ducks have strong momentum as they head closer to home for an in-state tournament:the Brandon Dunes Championship at the Brandon Dunes Golf Resort (Sheep Ranch Course) on March 8. Another strong victory for Oregon would set them up nicely heading into their home tournament, the Duck Invitational, on March 23. The Ducks won the tournament last season and have not won the Duck Invitational twice in a row since 2018.