Just after Labor Day, Michigan State University Men’s Golf Team opened their 2023-24 golf season by hosting the Folds of Honor (FOH) Collegiate at American Dunes in Grand Haven. Notre Dame took the title with the Spartans finishing a mere shot back to claim runner-up honors.
The field for the second edition of the Folds of Honor Collegiate featured some of the top men’s golf programs in the country. All three military academies, Air Force, West Point and the Naval Academy, participated. Two HBCU schools, Texas Southern and Virginia Union competed along with Arizona, Arkansas, Florida A&M, Florida State, Grand Valley State, Howard, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Memphis, MSU, NC State, Notre Dame, Oregon State and South Carolina.
The Folds of Honor Collegiate was first held last year. It highlights FOH Scholarship Recipients from several of the country’s strongest NCAA Golf Programs. The programs include the armed forces ARMY, NAVY, AIR FORCE, and two HBCU Schools, Texas Southern and Virginia Union.
MSU shot a 7-over par in the final round, but couldn’t match Notre Dame’s team total of two-under par. It left the Irish eight-over par for the tournament, just one shot better than the Spartan’s nine over par total. Arkansas finished in third place at 11-over par, with South Carolina fourth and Arizona in fifth place.
Senior August Meekhof led the way for the Spartans, tying for sixth place at 1-over par. Senior Bradley Smithson and junior Ashton McCulloch tied for 12th. Graduate student Drew Hackett, finished in a tie for 16th place, while freshman Lorenzo Pinili was 48th.
“Despite the one-shot deficit, this a dream come true for Michigan State Golf, “Lubahn said. “I hope it’s a dream for Folds of Honors and the Golf Coaches Association of America and everybody who’s involved that we pulled off something very special. That’s going to be our legacy 20 years from now when this tournament is one of the grandest. No one will remember what happened on 18 today, but we’ll remember the impact we had on our communities and our military families.”
Michigan State next competed in the Fighting Illini Invite held at historic Olympia Fields in Chicago. Weather was an issue and washed out the final round. The Spartans couldn’t maintain their strong play in Chicago and finished 15th out of the 15 teams in the field.
The Spartans next scheduled events are the Windon Memorial in Lake Forest, Illinois at the end of September and the Fighting Irish Classic at Notre Dame’s Warren Golf Course October 1-2.
