West Lafayette, Ind. - Kansas State didn’t have enough fuel left in the tank as they carded a final round score of 30-over 318 to finish in 15th with a final team score of 923 at the 2004 NCAA Central Regional played at the par-72, 7,259-yard Kampen Course of the Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex on the Purdue University campus.

Playing in the schools third all-time NCAA Central Regional, K-State entered the final day tied for 10th with Minnesota in the final qualifying position, but quickly fell down the leaderboard as three of the five Wildcats shot their highest 18-hole scores for the season. K-State’s final round of 30-over 318 was its highest of the year and was one-stroke higher over par than its previous 36 holes combined.

“You can’t judge the whole season by one round -- we accomplished a lot this season,” head coach Tim Norris said. “It’s just unfortunate to not be at the top of our game today when it counted.”

No. 21 Kentucky fired a final round of 11-over 299 to win the team title at 882 by 11 strokes over runner-up No. 8 Oklahoma State, which fired a 20-over 308. No. 17 Oklahoma finished in third with a 54-hole team score of 896. Texas A&M finished in fourth at 899 after carding a final-round 304. Texas tied with TCU for fifth place at 899 and gave the Big 12 four schools in the top five. The top 10 teams from each of the three regional sites advance to the NCAA Championships June 1-4 in Hot Springs, Va.

Kentucky’s John Holmes, who began the day tied for third, took medalist honors with a final round of 1-under 71 and a total score of 214. Holmes held off runner-up Will Dodson of SMU by two strokes. Big 12 medalist Jason Hartwick of Texas tied with Kentucky’s Brian Waldrop for third at 217.

The lone bright spot for the Wildcats was senior A.J. Elgert tied for 12th with a 74 and a 54-hole score of 222. By tying for 12th, Elgert becomes the first Wildcat to qualify for the NCAA Championships since Richard Laing in 1992. Elgert qualified because he was one of the top two finishers not on one of the top 10 teams that will advance to the NCAA Championships. Elgert will be joined at the NCAA Championships by Indiana’s Jeff Overton, who tied Elgert for 12th. Elgert also set a new mark for K-State as the lowest finisher in regional history. Previously, Greg Douglas held the top spot by tying for 33rd in last year’s regional. It was also Elgert’s second consecutive top-15 finish and fifth top 20 of the season.

“A.J. is a very, very talented player and I still think his best golf is in front of him at the next level,” Norris said.

Elgert’s collegiate career will continue at the NCAA Championships June 1-4 in Hot Springs, Va.

Senior Aaron Watkins shot his highest score of the year (79) to tie for 60th at 232. Sophomore Ben Kern fired an 87 to finish in a tie for 84th at 236. It was the highest score of his young career. Senior Tim Moody finished in a tie for 97th after shooting his highest score of the year, with a final-round 83 to give him a 54-hole score of 238. Junior Matt Van Cleave rounded out the Wildcats’ lineup with an 82 to tie for 107th at 241.

This concludes the Wildcats’ 70th season of golf, and maybe their best ever. K-State finished fourth in the Big 12, its highest conference finish since 1969. K-State’s eight top-five finishes is two more than any other team in K-State history, topping last year’s squad and the 1992-93 regional team for most all-time. During the record-breaking season, the Wildcats set a new 54-hole record with a team score of 830 in a victory at the Purina Classic. Also at the Purina Classic, Matt Van Cleave set a new 54-hole individual record with a 202 and the team set a record by shooting a second-round 268, the lowest round in K-State history.

K-State begins the 2004-05 season Sept. 10-11 at the Inverness Intercollegiate Invitational in Toledo, Ohio. For complete results, please visit Kansas State’s website at www.kstatesports.com.

Men’s Collegiate Golf
NCAA Men’s Central Regional
West Lafayette, Ind.
Kampen Golf Course
Par:72; Yardage: 7,259

Team Scores: 1. Kentucky 298-285-299882; 2. Oklahoma State 287-298-308893; 3. Oklahoma 305-294-297896; 4. Texas A&M 292-303-304899; T5. Texas 298-296-307901; T5. TCU 305-297602; 7. Purdue 295-302-308905; 8. Wichita State 302-300-306908; 9. SMU 302-299-308909; 10. Kent State 301-305-304910; 11. Minnesota 302-303-306911; 12. Notre Dame 310-297-307914; 13. Texas Tech 317-296-304917; 14. Ohio State 302-310-306918; 15. Kansas State 300-305-318923; 16. Kansas 315-300-311926; 17. Arkansas 314-307-310931; T18. Illinois 309-320-304933; T18. Tulsa 314-306-313933; T20. Colorado 304-307-323934; T20. Lamar 309-313-312934; T20. Indiana 306-308-320934; 23. Xavier 312-316-312940; 24. Western Illinois 323-323-312958; 25. Baylor 321-317-323961; 26. Princeton 323-318-333974; 27. Jackson State 333-337-3301,000.

Top Individuals: 1. John Holmes, (Kentucky) 73-70-71214; 2. Will Dodson, (SMU) 72-73-71216; T3. Brian Waldrop, (Kentucky) 70-70-77217; T3. Jason Hartwick, (Texas) 69-73-75217; 5. Anthony Kim, (Oklahoma) 71-75-72218.

Wildcat Individuals: T12. A.J. Elgert, 72-76-74222; T60. Aaron Watkins, 78-75-79232; T84. Ben Kern, 72-77-87236; T97. Tim Moody, 78-77-83238; T107. Matt Van Cleave, 80-79-82241.

K-StateSports Men's Golf

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