Kansas State University Athletics
Monday, February 17
La Quinta, Calif.
Kansas State University
vs
The Prestige
K-State Finishes Sixth at The Prestige
Feb 19, 2025 | Men's Golf
LA QUINTA, Calif. – With a pair of seniors earning top-10 showings on the individual leaderboard, the Kansas State men's golf finished in sixth place after shooting even par in the final round of The Prestige on Wednesday held at the par-71, 7,129-yard Greg Norman Course of PGA WEST.
The Wildcats concluded the event with a 54-hole score of 2-under par 850, one of only seven squads in the 24-team field to finish the event under par. K-State picked up seven wins over teams ranked in the top 50 of the National Collegiate Golf Rankings, topping No. 6 North Carolina, No. 15 Pepperdine, No. 34 Oregon, No. 35 Louisville, No. 40 Colorado State, No. 45 Stanford and No. 46 Kansas.
K-State was led by Kobe Valociek, who tied for fourth place at 7-under par 206, while Nicklaus Mason finished in a 10th-place tie at 5-under par 208.
"It was a pretty solid week for us overall," head coach Grant Robbins said. "Obviously Kobe and Nick both had fantastic tournaments, and Cooper (Schultz) bounced back well after a tough opening round. We are making a ton of birdies, which shows the kind of potential that we have, but we are just making way too many mistakes. We had five double-bogeys today, which we cannot do if we want to contend. I really liked how all of the guys competed. There are lots of positives, but there's also a lot of little things we need to clean up. We will get back to work and continue to get better."
The Wildcats tied for second with 57 total birdies over the three rounds but also had 14 double-bogeys.
A transfer from Virginia Tech, Valociek produced his best finish as a Wildcat, topping his seventh-place showing at the Wildcat Invitational. It was also his best collegiate finish since winning the Steelwood Collegiate in October 2023.
Mason earned the 10th top-10 finish of his career, one shy of a tie for ninth in school history. The Shawnee, Kansas, native bookended his event with another round in the 60s as he carded a 3-under par 68 on Wednesday with five birdies on the day. It was his ninth round in the 60s over 18 rounds this season, a new career high and one more than his total over 31 rounds last season.
Senior Cooper Schultz continued his turnaround from the first round as he carded an even-par 71 on Wednesday, finishing with a 54-hole score of 7-over par 220. After residing in a tie for 115th place on Monday with a first-round score of 80, Schultz climbed 47 spots over the final two rounds to tie for 68th place.
Senior Ian McCrary and freshman Fionn Dobbin each carded a 3-over par 74 on Wednesday as they tied for 86th place at 9-over par 222.
San Diego ran away with the team title after firing an 18-under par 266 in the final round, and the Toreros earned a 16-shot victory at 29-under par 823. San Diego's Ryan Abuan earned the individual win at 11-under par 202, picking up a three-shot victory after a final-round total of 6-under par 65.
Kansas State freshmen Erik Sabelström Holmberg and Tyler Strong played in a separate 39-man individual tournament held at The Golf Club at Terra Lago. Strong went 3-over par 75 on Wednesday as he tied for 17th place at 10-over par 226, while Sabelström Holmberg finished two shots back and tied for 21st place.
Next action for K-State is March 2 and 3 when the Wildcats compete in the Colleton River Collegiate held at Colleton River Club in Bluffton, South Carolina.
The Wildcats concluded the event with a 54-hole score of 2-under par 850, one of only seven squads in the 24-team field to finish the event under par. K-State picked up seven wins over teams ranked in the top 50 of the National Collegiate Golf Rankings, topping No. 6 North Carolina, No. 15 Pepperdine, No. 34 Oregon, No. 35 Louisville, No. 40 Colorado State, No. 45 Stanford and No. 46 Kansas.
K-State was led by Kobe Valociek, who tied for fourth place at 7-under par 206, while Nicklaus Mason finished in a 10th-place tie at 5-under par 208.
"It was a pretty solid week for us overall," head coach Grant Robbins said. "Obviously Kobe and Nick both had fantastic tournaments, and Cooper (Schultz) bounced back well after a tough opening round. We are making a ton of birdies, which shows the kind of potential that we have, but we are just making way too many mistakes. We had five double-bogeys today, which we cannot do if we want to contend. I really liked how all of the guys competed. There are lots of positives, but there's also a lot of little things we need to clean up. We will get back to work and continue to get better."
The Wildcats tied for second with 57 total birdies over the three rounds but also had 14 double-bogeys.
A transfer from Virginia Tech, Valociek produced his best finish as a Wildcat, topping his seventh-place showing at the Wildcat Invitational. It was also his best collegiate finish since winning the Steelwood Collegiate in October 2023.
Mason earned the 10th top-10 finish of his career, one shy of a tie for ninth in school history. The Shawnee, Kansas, native bookended his event with another round in the 60s as he carded a 3-under par 68 on Wednesday with five birdies on the day. It was his ninth round in the 60s over 18 rounds this season, a new career high and one more than his total over 31 rounds last season.
Senior Cooper Schultz continued his turnaround from the first round as he carded an even-par 71 on Wednesday, finishing with a 54-hole score of 7-over par 220. After residing in a tie for 115th place on Monday with a first-round score of 80, Schultz climbed 47 spots over the final two rounds to tie for 68th place.
Senior Ian McCrary and freshman Fionn Dobbin each carded a 3-over par 74 on Wednesday as they tied for 86th place at 9-over par 222.
San Diego ran away with the team title after firing an 18-under par 266 in the final round, and the Toreros earned a 16-shot victory at 29-under par 823. San Diego's Ryan Abuan earned the individual win at 11-under par 202, picking up a three-shot victory after a final-round total of 6-under par 65.
Kansas State freshmen Erik Sabelström Holmberg and Tyler Strong played in a separate 39-man individual tournament held at The Golf Club at Terra Lago. Strong went 3-over par 75 on Wednesday as he tied for 17th place at 10-over par 226, while Sabelström Holmberg finished two shots back and tied for 21st place.
Next action for K-State is March 2 and 3 when the Wildcats compete in the Colleton River Collegiate held at Colleton River Club in Bluffton, South Carolina.
– k-statesports.com –
How to follow the Cats: For complete information on K-State Men's Golf, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team's social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.
How to follow the Cats: For complete information on K-State Men's Golf, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team's social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
K-State Men's Golf | Wildcat Invitational 2025 Recap
Thursday, September 11
K-State MGolf | Highlights - Wildcat Invitational
Wednesday, September 10
K-State MGolf | Highlights - Wildcat Invitational Day 1
Monday, September 08
K-State Men's Golf | 2025 NCAA Selection Show
Thursday, May 01