Olesen, Daly II finish in top 10; Arkansas finishes 7th at Stephens Cup

DALLAS — The eighth-raked Arkansas men’s golf team, with top 10 finishes from Jacob Skov Olesen and John Daly II, posted a score of 27-under par (837) and finished seventh in the seven-team Jackson T. Stephens Cup, played at the par-72 Trinity Forest Golf Club. It was the Razorbacks’ fourth and final event for the fall campaign for the 2023-24 season.

Despite the finish, the Razorbacks’ 27-under-par score for 54 holes ranks eighth-best in program history and the 54-hole total of 837 ties for 17th on the program’s all-time list. Overall, Arkansas was a combined 54-under-par for the four fall events, including a third-place finish at the Southeastern Conference Match Play (827/-25) and a win at the Blessings Collegiate Invitational (563/-13).

Olesen tied for fifth as he tied his career-best for 18 holes with a 7-under 65, tied his career-low for 54 holes at 204 and had a career-best score of -12 in relation to par. In the final round, he opened with a birdie on the par-5, 10th hole then dropped back to even with a bogey on 11. He played his final 16 holes at -7 with five birdies and an eagle. He had two eagles in the event, one of four golfers to accomplish the feat. The eagles helped Olesen play the par 5’s at -9, tying for fourth-best in the field.

Daly, playing in his fifth career event and fourth of the fall, had the best performance of his young career. The redshirt sophomore tied for 10th at -10 (206) with all three rounds under par (70-67-69). His 18 birdies for 54 holes tied for second-most in the field and he played the par 3’s at 2-under par, tying for third-best in the field. Daly had a back-and-forth opening nine, alternating with three birdies and three bogeys over six holes, to make the turn at even par. He then posted birdies on holes 2, 5 and 8 (his 11th, 14th and 17th holes) to post 69 (3-under par).

John Driscoll was 3-under par for the tournament (69-72-72–213) and tied for 28th. Thomas Curry shot 69 in the final round and tied for 38th (74-75-69– 218). Manuel Lozada finished in a tie for 39th (75-7179–225).

No. 28 Florida State won the stroke play portion with a 51-under-par score of 813. Arizona, ranked 23rd, was an impressive 20-under in the final round and finished second with a score of 818 (-46). The two played for the Stephens Cup championship Wednesday in match play. Also making match play were No. 29 Southern Methodist University, who were playing on its home course, and No. 24 Louisiana State University. The teams finished at -39 and -32, respectively. No. 25 San Diego State placed fifth (833/-31) and No. 49 Stanford placed sixth (835/-29) to round out the field.