FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The Oklahoma State Cowboys won’t get a chance to defend their men’s NCAA Championship.
In a wild match that went to a playoff hole, the Longhorns outdueled the Cowboys to win 3-2 and advance to the match play final against Stanford after Cowboy senior Zach Bauchou missed a putt from a few feet that would’ve forced a second playoff hole. Entering the semifinal match, Texas held a 3-2 regular season record against Oklahoma State.
In what appeared to be the match of the day between Texas freshman Cole Hammer and Oklahoma State’s individual national champion Matthew Wolff, Hammer dominated from the start, announcing his presence with authority en route to a dominant 4&3 victory for the Longhorns’ first point. Seconds after the first point, fellow freshman Pierceson Coody added the second point with a 5&4 victory over Oklahoma State senior Hayden Wood.
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Viktor Hovland got a point on the board for Oklahoma State, defeating Spencer Soosman 2&1 in the match’s first pairing. Austin Eckroat then closed out Parker Coody 3&2 to even things up for the Cowboys.
The match came down to the final pairing of seniors with Oklahoma State’s Bauchou and Texas’ Steven Chervony. Bauchou won the 17th hole, taking a 1-up lead to No. 18. Chervony hit a clutch putt to force a playoff, but Bauchou wasn’t able to deliver in the end.
Texas will take on Stanford Wednesday morning in the final match, starting at 6:45 a.m. CT.
