SILVIS, Ill. – Entering the 70^th Annual NAIA Men’s Golf National Championships, Keiser University (Fla.) had been ranked as the No. 1 team in the nation during all six Coaches’ Top 25 polls. The Seahawks were rewarded with their first Red Banner in program history, outlasting the 2021 champion Dalton State (Ga.) by three strokes. Adding to the celebration, freshman Jakob Stubhaug won the individual champion as well.

Today, the same 18-holes of play saw two contrary battles waging on the course. A trio of individuals – Jack Dudeck of The Master’s (Calif.), John Houk from Tennessee Wesleyan, and Logan Smith of William Woods (Mo.) - began the day tied at nine under for the tournament and would once again play in the same pairing.

Meanwhile, Jonathan Douglas from Morningside (Iowa), Stubhaug from Keiser (Fla.), and Brendan Porter from Point (Ga.) were simultaneously playing in the team event and within striking distance of the individual national championship.

The pressure of the final round effected the golfers in different ways. Dudeck shot -8 under on the day, which pushed him to the top of the standings where he sat for the last half of the round. As Dudeck and Stubhaug began the final hole of the tournament, Dudeck held a nine-under to eight-under advantage. Stubhaug went into birdie the final hole while Dudeck had to settle for par.

This set up a sudden-victory playoff on hole-18. After winning the coin flip, Stubhaug drove the ball 280 yards off the tee into the middle of the fairway. Meanwhile, Dudeck did not have his best drive off the tee which left his second shot difficult. Fading to the left and into the water, he was now trailing by two strokes. Stubhaug’s second shot landed him 40 feet from the pin on the green. Although his missed his first put, he sank par for the one stroke victory.

After creating a large divide between themselves and the rest of the pack at the end of 56-holes, Keiser (Fla.) and Dalton State (Ga.) would dual for the national title. Bellevue (Neb.) played equal with the top teams and cruised to a third place finish. A final round +7 score by the team leapfrogged Houston-Victoria (Texas) into fourth place and secured the final trophy handed out at the event.  

Top 10 Team Standings

1 Keiser (Fla.) [-6]
2 Dalton State (Ga.) [-3]
3 Bellevue (Neb.) [+12]
4 Houston - Victoria (Texas) [+19]
5 Ottawa (Ariz.) [+21]
6 Beaufort (S.C.) [+22]
7 Point (Ga.) [+24]
8 British Columbia [+27]
9 Wayland Baptist (Texas) [+32]
10 Texas Wesleyan [+33]


Top 10 Individual Standings

T1*   Jakob Stavang Stubhaug (Keiser) [-8]
T1     Jack Dudeck (The Master’s) [-8]
3       Jonathan Douglas (Morningside) [-7]
4       John Houk (Tennessee Wesleyan) [-6]
T5     Steve Kibare (Dalton State) [-4]
T5     Matthew Cleary (Dalton State) [-4]
T7     Trevor Lewis (Embry-Riddle) [-3]
T7     Logan Smith (William Woods) [-3]
9       Jay Williams (Marian) [-2]
T10   Hunter Clay (Reinhardt) [E]
T10   Matthew Soucinek (Southeastern) [E]
T10   Jacob Thomas (USC Beaufort) [E]
        *won in playoff