Hays, Ks. — Fort Hays State senior Trey Herman closed out his collegiate career on Wednesday (May 6) at the NCAA Midwest/Central Regional in Lemont, Ill. Herman played very well, finishing sixth overall out of 108 golfers, but it wasn’t quite enough to make the NCAA Championship site.
The top two individuals not on NCAA Championship qualifying site teams move on to the NCAA Championship site. Garrison Myles of Malone University, who made the regional as a member of a team, turned into the top individual since his team didn’t finish in the top five. Myles finished second overall with a score of 1-under par. The second qualifier also came to the tournament with a team, Michael Hearne of Southern Nazarene, who finished in a tie for third at 1-over par.
Hearne won a playoff to take the second qualifying spot against DJ Vogt of Bellarmine, who also finished at 1-over par. Vogt came to the tournament as an individual.
Herman finished the tournament 3-over par, the relation to par he shot on Wednesday after entering the day at even par. Herman remained in the top 10 of the standings throughout the tournament, shooting a 4-under 68 on the first day to sit in a tie for third, then a 4-over par 76 on the second day to enter the final round in a tie for fifth place. Herman’s 3-over 75 in the final round was good enough for seventh, the same exact place in the standings he finished at last year’s Midwest/Central Regional.
Herman played in the same group as DJ Vogt on Wednesday. Vogt started the day one stroke back of Herman, but turned the tables after shooting 1-under through the first three holes and Herman started the day 2-over. A bogey by Vogt later in the first nine had him just one stroke ahead of Herman heading to the back nine.
Herman slipped four behind Vogt after a bogey at the 11th and birdies by Vogt at the 11th and 12th. Herman’s only birdie of the day at the par-5 15th cut the gap to three. Vogt bogeyed two of the last three holes, but it was too late for Herman, who played the last three holes 1-over par. Vogt’s bogeys proved costly, as it eventually resulted in a playoff that he lost in a chance to reach the national championship site.
Eric Kline of Central Oklahoma won the tournament at 2-under par overall, shooting 1-under in his final round. He and Garrison Myles were the only two golfers to finish under par. Kline helped Central Oklahoma (885) to the regional team championship over Central Missouri (895) by 10 strokes. UCO and UCM moved on to the national championship site.
Herman recorded six top-10 finishes in his senior year and had a scoring average of 73.9. He was a two-time All-MIAA selection and qualified for the NCAA Midwest/Central Regional two consecutive years as a junior and a senior.
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