Harvard Men’s Golf Wins Ivy League Championship

This weekend, the Harvard men’s golf team won its fifth Ivy League championship in program history in nail-biting fashion at the historic Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, N.J. The victory marks the first time since 2017 that the Crimson has claimed the title.

All it takes is one, as No. 130 Harvard (+10, 874) bested No. 95 Princeton (+11, 875) by one stroke in a pivotal third round. In addition to the team’s overall victory, sophomore Barry Zhang (-4, T1) secured the outright individual championship by winning a playoff after Round Three.

After a hot start on Friday in the first round, everything came crashing down on Saturday. What began as complete Harvardian domination (-2 in Round One, 1st) devolved into one of the worst team rounds (+16 in Round Two, 2nd) of this season, and the worst round of the Crimson’s spring tournaments.

Saturday was marred by difficult weather in New Jersey, as a chilly morning combined with rain showers throughout the second round. Weather woes have become common at the Ivy League Golf Championships, as last year’s tournament saw its third round canceled due to unplayable conditions.

Coming off of its resounding Masters weekend victory at Princeton, the Crimson was “excited and eager” for the conference tournament, wrote sophomore captain William Ma (+3, 5th).

Harvard, boasting the youngest roster in the conference, was undaunted in its neck-and-neck battle with reigning champions Princeton, which was notably playing on friendly New Jersey grass.

The Baltursol Golf Club, including the Lower Course where the tournament was played, has hosted seven U.S. Opens and two PGA Championships.

“Baltursol is a true championship venue with a storied history, and we are looking forward to the opportunity to compete there, ” Ma wrote in an interview before the tournament.

The Club has a storied history, and Harvard has now etched its historic name into it.

Ma was joined by fellow sophomores Zhang and Ieuan Jones (+1, 4th) as the three Crimson golfers who placed in the individual top five. In a tie-breaking playoff for the individual title, Zhang bested Princeton’s sophomore Reed Greyserman (-4, T1), who played a prevailing role in the Tigers’ third-round battle against the Crimson.

Zhang, who led Harvard to a fourth-place finish at the Cutter Creek Intercollegiate earlier this spring, also had the distinction of besting Princeton’s No. 118 senior Riccardo Fantinelli.

Coming off the notoriety of one of Harvard’s two holes-in-one at the Princeton Invitational, freshman Morgan Riley (+20, 27th) had a tougher go of things with four double bogeys in the unpleasant Round Two (+10 in Round Two).

Freshman Issac Ahn (+10, T14th) was the embodiment of the second-round woes, as he scored even in rounds one and three, but like Morgan, hit ten over par in round two.

Harvard ultimately fielded only freshmen and sophomores for the conference championship, so these results speak volumes to the team’s growth throughout the season.

”Our team has really started to gel well in terms of camaraderie and a commitment to disciplined training. Efforts compound over the course of a season,” Ma explained.

Working through the components of the Crimson’s victory, Round One set the right tone for Harvard as it finished two under par. Princeton (+6 in round one) and Penn (+52, 916, 6th overall, +11 in round one) trailed too close for comfort, though, which the Crimson (-2 in Round One) soon realized.

Zhang (-3 in Round One) had a clean first round with three birdies and no bogeys to lead Harvard, as he did throughout the tournament. Jones (E in round one) balanced out his four bogeys with an eagle on the par five hole seven and a couple of birdies to come in all leveled out. Ahn (E in round one) and Ma (+1 in round one) stayed consistent throughout the round to complete the final team score of -2 at the end of the first day.

In collegiate golf, five players trek the course, and six can be carried on the roster with one as a substitute. However, only the top four scores go into a team’s round score. For Harvard, this meant that its team score in the first round was calculated based on Zhang, Jones, Ahn, and Ma’s performances.

Round Two wasn’t just challenging for the freshmen, though, as all seven Ivy squads ended at least seven above par (Princeton hit +7 in Round Two). Harvard fell behind the Tigers and Columbia (+30, 894, overall 3rd place, +12 in Round Two) in the second round, but collectively, Princeton jumped the Crimson by one stroke.

Fortunately for Harvard, though, the difference of that one stroke eventually ended in its favor.

The sophomore trio of Ma, Zhang, and Jones was able to keep the Crimson’s score somewhat in check by hitting for +1, +2, and +3 above par, respectively. On hole eight, Jones hit yet another eagle. That being said, the team struggled on hole 10, a par four that’s 444 yards long, with all five golfers recording at least a bogey.

When the Saturday rains settled in Springfield, Harvard faced a challenge that many golfers have long feared: facing down a Tiger on Sunday.

When it mattered most, the Crimson rose to the challenge, channeling the spirit of the team’s seven under par performance in round three at the Princeton Invitational. Harvard took full advantage of the softer, slower conditions provided by the previous day’s rain. Zhang (-3 in Round Three), Jones (-2 in Round Three), and Ma (+1 in Round Three) weren’t just playing for personal glory; they were embracing the goal of bringing home the title.

“We talk a lot about fuel goals and process goals. Coach Schernecker and Coach Rhoads really encourage us to work with a purpose. Each season, the fuel goal is to bring home the Ivy title, but we also know that our process goals are what allow us to achieve,” Ma wrote. “The little things that we do on a daily basis in our preparation all contribute to our fuel goal, and we just want to focus on controlling what we can control.”

The teams’ camaraderie was evident this weekend. When a championship is decided by one stroke, and Jones hits the pivotal birdie on hole 18 to seal the win, the Crimson proved its spirit was strong despite its youth

The youngest team in the Ivy League, which started the season barely cracking the top 10 in the fall tournaments, now stands victorious.

“Looking back on this season, the moments that stick out most to me are actually the seemingly mundane ones—van rides back after long days on the course, team meals at Felipe’s, huddling around the 18th green to support teammates on the home stretch—just spending time together,” wrote Ma. “Those are the moments where our team has really bonded.”

By winning the Ivy League Championship, the Crimson punched an automatic ticket to the NCAA Regionals Tournament, which will take place on May 18-20. The teams’ regional assignment and course will be announced in the following days.

“The successes are awesome, but it’s those day-to-day experiences that have made this group so close and made the season so much fun,” the captain of the Ivy League Champion team wrote.