Oklahoma wins third straight Kā‘anapali Classic on Maui

Building upon their five-shot lead after the second round, No. 2 Oklahoma became the first team to win three consecutive Kā‘anapali Classics, as well as the program’s fifth title on Maui (2015, ’19, ’22, ’23, ‘24) since the event’s inception.

“A lot of birdies and a lot of fun were had in Hawai‘i,” said Oklahoma men’s golf coach, Ryan Hybl, an inductee into the 2024 Golf Coaches Association of America Hall of Fame. “We gave a few back, stubbing our toe down the stretch. So many of our guys collectively had a great week, which doesn’t happen that often. It was gratifying to get the job done. We head home happy, yet can’t wait to return.”

Oklahoma was anchored by three players who finished in the top 12: Jase Summy (3), a 2023-24 All-Big 12 selection who finished T8 last year at Kā‘anapali, junior Matthew Troutman (T12) and freshman, Asher Whitaker (T12).

No. 32 Colorado (-36) finished in solo second place after climbing three spots on Monday. Their 12-under final round was fueled by Dylan McDermott (3), Justin Biwer (8), Brandon Knight (14) and Parker Paxton (14).

The No. 52 Kansas Jayhawks placed third (-35), their second third-place finish this fall. No. 67 Indiana placed fourth (-34). No. 5 LSU (-33) rounded out the top five.

“Our team performance featured highs and lows, but our guys controlled their composure well. That was our difference maker,” said Colorado associate head coach, Derek Tolan. “After a great fall of playing at a high level, we feel confident and excited heading into the offseason. There are some ‘easy fixes’ that can be implemented to continue elevating our team.”

With four holes to play, four individuals were tied for the lead. It all came down to a birdie on the final hole. Oklahoma redshirt senior Jaxson Dowell held onto his two-shot lead after Sunday, carding one eagle, seven birdies and one bogey over his final 18 holes to win the Kā‘anapali Classic individual title. Dowell becomes the third individual medalist from Oklahoma to win the Kā‘anapali Classic (Luke Kluver; 2023 and Quade Cummins; 2019) and the eighth tournament champion to post a sub-200 score following his three-day total of 196 (-17).

“Winning is supposed to be hard. It certainly was today. I was fortunate to make key putts down the stretch in a great battle with my teammate, Clark, that came down to the last hole,”
said Jaxson Dowell. “I wasn’t even supposed to be here until someone sadly got injured. To play so well and cap it off with a win in Hawai‘i is a memory that I’ll cherish forever.”

Dowell’s opening round was the best round of his college career, a career-low 63. The 2023-24 Academic All-Big 12 First Team member maintained his lead to claim his first collegiate win.

Finishing in solo second place was Oklahoma’s Clark Van Gaalen. The 6’4” freshman finished at 16-under to earn his first career top-10 finish.

Third place belonged to Colorado senior Dylan McDermott (-15).

“Dylan coming down the stretch was huge,” said Colorado’s Tolan. “Oddly enough, we weren’t too concerned about him because he is such a consistent player in the clutch moments.”

Fourth place was tied between Liberty’s Ike Joy, who shot a career-low 65 yesterday, and Indiana junior Clay Merchent, the third Hoosier to ever be named Big Ten Freshman of the Year.

Following Sunday’s round, the Hawai‘i Rainbow Warrior golf team held a clinic for keiki in the Maui Junior Golf Association and Lahaina Junior Golf Association. Attendees received swing lessons, learned about college recruiting and were able to talk with Hawai‘i’s student-athletes.

The 11th annual Kā‘anapali Classic will be contested from Nov. 1–3, 2025.
All team and individual scores can be found on SCOREBOARD.

Team Leaderboard
Place School To Par Rd. 1 Rd. 2 Rd. 3

1 Oklahoma -42 -20 -11 -11
2 Colorado -36 -14 -10 -12
3 Kansas -35 -15 -11 -9
4 Indiana -34 -16 -9 -9
5 LSU -33 -16 -7 -10
T6 TCU -32 -7 -12 -13
T6 Georgia -32 -9 -13 -10
8 San Jose State -27 -10 -6 -11
T9 North Florida -26 -18 -7 -1
T9 Liberty -26 -9 -7 -10
11 Louisiana Tech -24 -2 -7 -15
12 East Tennessee State -18 -13 -2 -3
13 Wyoming -16 +3 -9 -10
14 Sacramento State -15 -8 -5 -2
15 Connecticut -9 E -11 +2
16 UC Irvine -7 +2 E -9
17 Gonzaga -5 -1 +2 -6
18 Hawai‘i +1 +3 +7 -9
19 Cal State Northridge +2 +2 -3 +3
20 Southern Illinois +3 +4 +1 -2
21 Boise State +12 +2 +3 +7

Top Individuals
Place Player School To Par Rd. 1 Rd. 2 Rd. 3

1 *Jaxon Dowell Oklahoma -17 -8 -5 -4
2 *Clark Van Gaalen Oklahoma -16 -4 -5 -7
3 Dylan McDermott Colorado -15 -4 -4 -7
T4 Ike Joy Liberty -14 -3 -6 -5
T4 Clay Merchant Indiana -14 -4 -6 -4
6 Jase Summy Oklahoma -13 -6 -4 -3
7 Jack Beauchamp TCU -12 -3 -7 -2
T8 Kristian Bressum East Tennessee State -11 -6 -5 E
T8 Jay Mendell LSU -11 -2 -3 -6
T8 Gunnar Broin Kansas -11 -2 -5 -4
T8 Justin Biwer Colorado -11 -7 E -4

*Competing as Individual