Kansas Retains Junior Cup after Matches End in Tie
Singles Matches Conducted Thursday at Wild Horse Golf Club
GOTHENBURG (August 12, 2021) – It all came down to the final match, and the 36th Kansas-Nebraska Junior Cup ended in a tie at Wild Horse Golf Club in Gothenburg on Thursday, with Kansas retaining the Cup.
It's the third time in six years that the matches have ended in an 8-all tie. Kansas won the matches last year, and keeps the Cup.
Nebraska made a charge in the early matches, winning the first three to get within 1.5 points of clinching the Cup. Omaha's Christopher Atkinson held a 2-up lead early in the lead match against Blake Saffell of Wellington, but saw it slip away and he was down by the same deficit after 14 holes. He rallied though, winning Nos. 15 and 16 with pars to tie the match. Atkinson followed with an eagle on the par-5 17th hole to take the lead and closed out a 1-up win on the 18th hole with a par.
Omaha's Rex Soulliere followed right behind Atkinson and rallied after falling behind after 13 holes against Luke Scheufler of Andover. He birdied the 14th to tie the match, then added another birdie on No. 16 to take the lead. Soulliere need just a par on the par-5 17th hole to close out his match, 2 and 1. It was a perfect week for Soulliere, who's headed to the University of Dallas this fall. He went a perfect 3-0 in his matches.
The third win came at the hands of Elkhorn's Luke Gutschewski, who also faced an early deficit. He was 2-down after three holes against Brent Reintjes of Wichita, but won three of the next four holes to take the lead. Gutschewki continued to build his lead and was 2 up after making a long birdie putt on No. 14. He won the next two holes to seal his win, 4 and 2.
Grand Island's Marcus Holling came up with the next big point for Nebraska. He battled to tie his match with Noah Holtzman of Wichita, which gave Nebraska a chance to win the last match out and secure the Cup.
In the last match, Jake Boor of Omaha and Carson Baker of Overland Park were in a back-and-forth battle. Boor made a long birdie putt on the par-5 14th to take a 1-up lead. Baker answered with a great pitch to six inches on No. 17 for a conceded birdie to tie the match. Boor had a 12-foot par putt on No. 18 to win his match and clinch the Cup for Nebraska, but his ball lipped out and a tie gave Kansas the win.
Final results and additional information is available at the Junior Cup website below.
About the NGA
The Nebraska Golf Association, founded in 1966, is comprised of all members of public and private clubs and/or municipal or regional golf associations which utilize an approved handicap service recognized by the USGA and provided by the NGA. Our mission is to uphold and promote the game of golf and its values to all golfers in Nebraska. Among the duties of the Association include governance of member clubs and service as their handicapping and course rating authority, conduct of state golf championships, local USGA qualifying & other notable competitions, promotion of junior golf, presentation of worthwhile educational programs and support of allied golf organizations in Nebraska. The Nebraska Golf Association is an Allied Golf Association of the USGA and carries out core services including Handicap Administration and Oversight, Course Rating, Rules of Golf and Rules of Amateur Status, Tournaments and USGA Championship Qualifiers and USGA Initiatives and Community Programs.
