The Idaho men’s golf team beat the Boise State Broncos by 10 strokes to win the first ever Battle for Idaho at Hillcrest Country Club in Boise, Idaho. Vandal sophomore Joe Sykes and Bronco sophomore Cole Rueck tied for first place in the duel, ending the competition 6-over par.
Idaho’s final score was 885, giving the team a slight edge over Boise State, whose score of 895 kept them on the Vandals’ heels. Boise State won the first round by seven and Idaho won the second by the same margin. This left the score tied at 591 before the third and final round of play.
After Sykes’ and Rueck’s score of 219, came Idaho sophomore Sam Johnson, who finished alone in third place with a final score of 222, only three strokes behind first place.
Idaho swept the competition in the final standings as six of the eight highest players hailed from UI. The only Bronco in the top eight besides Rueck, was sixth year Drew Reinke who finished sixth with a 12-over-par 226.
The tournament was played over two days, April 15 and 16. Six players competed on each side, with the four top scorers being counted for each school.
The next time Idaho men’s golf takes to the fairway will be April 23 at Wigwam Golf Club in Litchfield Park, Arizona, starting on Tuesday, April 23. The Vandals will take on Northern Colorado, Sacramento State and Weber State in the Big Sky Men’s Golf Championship.
Willie Gibbs can be reached at [email protected]