Boise State men’s golf wrapped up its fall schedule on Oct. 29 with a 12th-place finish in the 19-team Kā’anapali Classic in Maui, Hawai’i.
The Broncos finished the tournament collectively shooting an 837, placing ahead of teams such as Indiana, Gonzaga and fellow Mountain West school Wyoming. The team finished 15 strokes under-par for the second time this fall, with the other 15-under performance coming in the Palouse Collegiate on Sept. 9-10 where the Broncos notched an 829 and finished 23-under.
The three-day tournament, played annually at the Royal Kā‘anapali Golf Course in Lahaina, Maui, Hawaiʻi, saw Boise State shoot 11-under and sit comfortably tied for fourth place through the first day. The Broncos struggled on day two, finishing 1-over, but bounced back on the third day and ended up 5-under.
Senior Cole Rueck, a two-time All-Mountain West athlete, led the way for Boise State, shooting a 204 (-9) and tying for 18th-place out of 120 golfers. The Corvallis, Oregon native shot under par in all three rounds, shooting 70 in the first, and 67s in the second and third. The 204 was Rueck’s second-lowest three-round total of his career.
Rueck, who rose 11 spots over the final 18 holes, credits his simplistic mindset to what allowed him to play so well after an unfavorable first round.
“I stayed patient and told myself that there was still more than half of the tournament remaining,” Rueck said. “I took advantage of the holes I needed to and was able to finish really strong.”
With scores of 70-67-67, Rueck has shot par or better in 12 of the 15 rounds this fall. With 64 par or better finishes in his career, he’s tied with Graham DeLaet for third-most in program history.
Gavyn Knight and Ryan Meyer ended under-par as well, finishing the tournament 209 and 210, respectively. The pair combined to shoot par or better in five of the six rounds. In addition, junior Luke Cushman finished at 1-over and tied for 73rd, with former Mountain West Freshman of the Week Reese Knox posting a 227 and tying for 110th.
When asked about the improvements and adjustments that the team has made this fall, Gavyn Knight cited the team’s ability to stay poised in high-pressure situations.
“We’ve just gotten more comfortable being up there and playing well,” Knight said. “The mentality that we have is a little different from last year.”
The Broncos made a 27-stroke improvement from last year’s Kā’anapali Classic. When asked what changes his team made that allowed them to improve their play, head coach David Trainor noted their focus on the process, and not end results.
Additionally, Trainor credited a discussion players had at dinner after day 2 as a turning point for the team.
“The biggest thing is we stayed in the process and focused on the process only,” Trainor said. “One of the things we spoke about after the second round was letting the game come to us as opposed to trying to force a bad position or force the ball into a certain area.”
As the team continues to improve throughout the offseason, Trainor hopes to instill a sense of confidence in his players while still holding them accountable to getting better each day.
“Number one, I hope this team believes in themselves, because this team can play golf,” Trainor said. “To quote Jeremiah [Dickey], ‘we’re not done’. We always have more work to do and we can always improve. I tell the guys every day, ‘one percent better, one percent better, one percent better’.”
With the fall season now in the books, the Broncos shift their focus to the spring. To kick off their schedule, the team will participate in the Genesis Collegiate Showcase on Feb. 16 at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, California.
