Staff Writer- Nathan Swanson
The Gustavus Men’s Golf Team competed this last weekend in the 2025 MIAC Championships. This three-day event took place at the Edinburgh Golf Course in Brooklyn Park. Round one was played on Saturday, round two on Sunday, and the third and final round was played on Monday. On Saturday, the Gusties shot +13 and were tied for second place with Bethel University. Round two for Gustavus saw the team move up to first place as they shot a +7. In the third and final round of the championships, the Gusties placed second after shooting +12 and finishing +32 for the entire event. Bethel University saw a rally on Monday as they shot +27 for the day and won the tournament, finishing +3. Three players from Gustavus finished in the top ten and earned All-Championship honors, Senior Wyatt Carlson, Junior Blake Forrest, and Senior Chris Gutuza. Carlson talked about the emotions heading into the tournament. “We came into the weekend feeling really hopeful and excited about our chances to compete for a MIAC title. After playing the NCAA preview the week prior, we felt both prepared and confident,” Carlson said.
With the first round played on Saturday, Carlson finished the day in first place, and Gutuza finished in second place. Wyatt Carlson broke par in round one, shooting -1, which led the whole MIAC playing field of 45 golfers. Gutuza shot +1, which had him behind Carlson for second-best on Saturday. Forrest and First-year Sam LaFrenze were the third and fourth counted scores for Gustavus that day. Forest shot +6, which tied him for 24th, and LaFrenze shot +8, finishing in 29th. From round one, the team had a fast start for the day, which was important, and something the entire team had in their minds as an area of focus. Looking forward to round two on Sunday, Gustavus was aiming to set themselves up for success and to keep going strong.
“Going into the second round, our team had a ton of confidence knowing we had more left in the tank. That belief showed early—we made 11 birdies on the front nine alone, which gave us great momentum,” Carlson explained.
In round two, Gustavus led the conference at +20. They had another fast start, similar to what they saw the day before in the first round. The focus of setting themselves up in good positions looked to be paying off. Carlson led Gustavus, shooting for par, and had another impressive day. Out of the 45 golfers, he stood first overall and had a four-stroke lead over the runners-up. Helping the team climb in the standings, both Forrest and Sophomore Jimmy Abdo shot +1. Forrest moved up to 9th overall at +7, and Abdo moved up to 12th overall at +9. Gutza, who finished the day sixth overall and +6 for the tournament, shot +5 in the second round. While Gustavus had contributions with three players in the top 10, they looked to finish the championship off collectively, moving into round three and the final day on Monday.
The third round was a battle, and Gustavus would come up in second place behind Bethel University. In round three, Bethel shot +27 and finished the event with a tournament-best +3. Up to the final nine holes, the Gusties had continued to set themselves up for positioning. Down the stretch, there were a few missteps that hindered them. While the team was disappointed with the conclusion, Carlson, Forrest, and Gutuza each earned All-Championship honors as they finished in the top ten. Carlson tied for second overall shooting +5 in the three-day event. Forrest tied for sixth place after shooting +8 through the tournament. Gutuza, who shot +9, finished ninth overall. Abdo shot +11 and finished the tournament thirteenth overall. LaFrenz finished 34th, shooting +22. There were a few takeaways Carlson had from the weekend.
“We know that when we play our best golf, we can compete with anyone in the country. While the weekend didn’t end exactly how we hoped, there are plenty of positives to build on moving forward,” Carlson said. In terms of looking ahead to their next tournament, “The Twin Cities Classic is a great opportunity for us to get back into the winner’s circle and serves as the perfect tune-up before Golfweek,” Carlson said.
The Twin Cities Classic will be played starting this next weekend on Saturday, Oct. 4th, and it will conclude on Monday, Oct. 6th.