Provence makes history
West Texas A&M’s Wyatt Provence put his name in the record books for a lifetime becoming the first men’s golfer to claim the individual NCAA Division II national championship on Thursday at the Orange County National Golf Center in Winter Park, Fla.
The Randall graduate made history in more ways than one during his 54-holes. Over the Tuesday through Thursday, Provence was lights out shooting round of 67-66-68 for a 201 which was 12-under par.
The 201 by Provence is the lowest three-round score in Division II championship history as the freshman registered five birdies on Thursday afternoon with three of them coming on the back-nine to pull away for a five-stroke win over Central Oklahoma’s Jordan Wilson and Nathan Kraynyk of Ferris State (206).
“This means so much to me,” Provence said. “I have put so much work for moments like this. It truly shows that hard work pays off. I’m just glad I was able to get it done with my family and friends here to share it with me.”
Provence was named the 2024 Arnold Palmer National Individual Champion Award while also being named a First-Team PING All-American to go along with claiming the 2024 NCAA Division II Phil Mickelson Outstanding Freshman Award.
Buffs finish strong at nationals
Behind Provence’s effort he and his teammates were able to qualify for the match play portion of the NCAA Division II
It marks the first time in program history that the Buffs have advanced to the Match Play portion of the NCAA Division II national tournament.
The Buffs saw a dream season come to an end on Friday, however, did upset No. 1-seed West Florida in the quarterfinal round, 2-2-1 with WT advancing via a total stroke tiebreaker as they bested the Argonauts by four shots 352 to 356.
Pepe De La Concepción Quílez fired a three-over-par 74 as he overcame a three-shot deficit after the opening hole to battle back to within two at the turn before falling by a stroke to UWF’s Mason Minkel.
Pablo Rebolleda kept WT’s season alive in his match as the junior from Spain trailed by two strokes with three holes remaining before battling back to tie with Fabian Wennerlof with rounds of 71.
In the semifinals, the Buffs battled until the final hole before No. 5-seed North Georgia punched a ticket to Saturday’s championship with a 2-1-2 victory.
Lady Buffs end fantastic year in match play round
Fresh off an NCAA Division II West Regional championship, the Lady Buffs golf team finished the year strong at the D-II national championship tournament played at the Panther Lake Golf Course in Winter Park, Fla.
For a third straight year, WTAMU advanced to the match play stage after finishing second in the stroke play shooting a team score of 13-under-par 851.
Lorenza Perini finished the 54-hole tournament tied for third after posting a final-round score of one-under par 71 to end nine-under (210) in stroke play.
Sarah Reed continued to impress in her first NCAA championship tying for seventh at 3-under (213).
During Friday’s match play, the Lady Buffs tied with Indianapolis in the quarterfinal round, 2-2-1, but the Greyhounds advanced on the tiebreaker.
WTAMU received wins from senior Rylie Cook and freshman Sarah Reed in the No. 1 and No. 3 spots.
