STILLWATER, Okla. (UCFKnights.com) – The UCF men's golf team capped off the 2017-18 season on Sunday during the final round of stroke play in the NCAA National Championships at Karsten Creek. The squad recorded a day three score of 307 for a three-round total of 897.
On the final day, it was the two seniors that led the way for the Knights, each shooting 75 on the day. After recording a 39 on the back nine to start the day Manuel Elvira made the turn and eagled the first hole to finish even on the front to close out his collegiate career.
Juuso Kahlos had a steady final round with a 38 on the front and a 37 on the back to cap off his final year at UCF.
Freshman Tommy Cao scored a 78 on the day with Bobby Bai close behind with a 79. Kyler Tate rounded out his third round with an 81.
UCF finished tied for 24th after the end of stroke play and ahead of No. 35 BYU, No. 30 Oregon, No. 21 North Florida, and No. 11 Baylor.
NCAA National Championships - Karsten Creek - Par 72, 7460 Yards
| Player | Rd 1 | Rd 2 | Rd 2 | Two-Day Total |
| Manuel Elvira | 71 | 80 | 75 | 226 (+10) |
| Juuso Kahlos | 72 | 75 | 75 | 222 (+6) |
| Bobby Bai | 73 | 73 | 79 | 225 (+9) |
| Kyler Tate | 75 | 76 | 81 | 232 (+16) |
| Tommy Cao | 76 | 75 | 78 | 229 (+13) |
Over the three days, the Knights collected 37 birdies, 154 pars, and one eagle. UCF averaged 3.27 strokes per par three, 4.32 strokes per par four, and a commanding 4.83 strokes per par five.
This is UCF's second straight appearance in the NCAA National Championship and ninth overall as a program.
Season Stats
For the 2017-18 season, Tate paced the Knights with a 72.6 average, while Kahlos was on his teammates heels with a 72.8. Tate also led the Knights in rounds scoring par or better with 19 and collected five top 10 wins and 6 top 20 wins.
In 33 rounds, Kahlos shot par or better 15 times with a low round of 66 and a low 54-hole total with a 206.
Bai had an impressive sophomore season playing in 12 events and carried a 73.1 average with 13 rounds scoring par or better. The Shantou, China native shot the lowest round of all the Knights with a 63, which he recorded in the Jackrabbit Invitational.
Elvira played in all 13 events for UCF with a 74.5 average and a low round of 68. Cao had a solid first year as a Knight recoding a low round of 70 in seven events competing with UCF.
Knightly Notables
Record Regional
UCF finished second at the Kissimmee Regional and put up impressive numbers. They led the field with a team score of 276 after round one and after the third, the Knights advanced to their second consecutive National Championship with an 834 (-30), the program's second best 54-hole total.
American Accolades
Elvira, Tate, and Bai all earned 2018 All-Conference accolades for their performance on the course. It is Elvira's third consecutive all-conference recognition, Bai's second, and Tate's first. Combined, the three have had 11 top 10 finishes and 43 rounds recording par or better.
Bobby's Boomin'
Bobby Bai was crowned champion at the 15th annual Boilermaker Invitational and was named The American Conference Player of the Week on April 18. Bai finished with a 139 for 36 holes shooting 70 (-2) for the first 18 and a 69 (-3) for the second round. Bai converted four birdies in the first 18 holes and followed up the second round of 18 with eight birdies in total and an eagle on the seventh hole. The Shantou, China native also led the pack in averages strokes for par fives with a 4.25 average. For the two rounds, he shot six under on par five holes. At the end of day one of the Kissimmee Regional, Bai led the field with a 67.
Fantastic Fall
In the fall, the Knights were crowned champions for two of their five competitions. The first came at the Hartford Hawks Invitational in Couth Kent Connecticut. As a team, the Knights carded a three-round score of 836 to finish the tournament at 28-under par. The next closest competition was Seton Hall, which took second place 25 strokes back at -3.
Kudos For Kahlos And Kyler
Juuso Kahlos finished as the top individual at the Hartford Hawks Invitational, while teammate Kyler Tate rounded out the tournament in second. Kahlos was tied for second heading into the final round. After scoring a red-hot 66 in the first round, he came back at even par 72 in the second round. A third-round total of 69 pushed him to 9-under for the tournament, which gave him medalist honors by two strokes in front of teammate Kyler Tate. In the lead after two rounds, Tate turned in a 1-over 73 over the final 18 holes to come in at 7-under with runner-up honors. Throughout the Regional, each of the Knights held a top spot on the individual leaderboard.