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Klose shoots 67 (-4) to take home individual title in Laredo.
Source: NMSU Athletics
By Michael Navarrette
Photo By Sam Wasson for NMSU: Courtesy
LAREDO, Texas – For the second time this season, an Aggie has played his way to an individual title. After posting a 67 (-4) in the final round on Tuesday, Ethan Klose earned the individual crown at the Border Olympics hosted by the University of Houston at Laredo Country Club. Klose ultimately finished the week at five under to earn the victory over No. 50 Hunter Thomson of Michigan. NM State’s Aidan Thomas also turned in a top-10 finish as he finished at even-par to end the week in a tie for sixth place.
The efforts of Klose and Thomas also helped the Aggies improve one spot on the team leaderboard as they finished tied for second alongside host and 47th-ranked Houston. NM State has now logged three consecutive top three finishes as a team dating back to October when they took home the team title at the Herb Wimberly Memorial.
Across the two-day event, the Aggies totaled 861 strokes to finish nine over par. This would fall just six strokes shy of tournament champion Louisiana who shot a combine one-under on Tuesday to finish three strokes over par for the week.
For Klose, this marks his second top 10 finish in his last two starts after he finished tied for eighth at the Aggies’ home tournament: the Herb Wimberly Memorial. This also marks the second time that Klose has finished a tournament under par after shooting 2-under at the Herb Wimberly in October.
Klose joins Alexandre Bauduin to become the second Aggie to win a tournament during the 2024-25 campaign. For the senior from Phoenix, the final-round 67 marks the lowest round of his collegiate career and third round in the 60s this season after shooting a 68 in the second round of the Herb Wimberly and a 69 in the opening round of the N.I.T. two weeks ago. Klose began his day seven pars before tallying back-to-back birdies on holes eight and nine to put him at two-under at the turn. He would then submit a trio of pars before going birdie, bogey, birdie, birdie on holes 13 through 16, respectively. Finally, he closed out his round with a pair of pars to come into the clubhouse four strokes under par.
Meanwhile, Aidan Thomas concluded an up and down week of golf with two birdies in his final three holes to come in at 72 (+1) in the final round, allowing him to finish the week at even-par. This marks Thomas’ second top 10 finish of the season and 12th of his illustrious career. Additionally, Thomas now has two top 15 finishes at the Border Olympics to his name after finishing 12th as a junior in 2023.
Freshman Mateo Payán finished inside the top 30 as he finished the week at +7 to secure a tie for 27th place among the 84-man field. Alexandre Bauduin finished just one stroke behind Payán to earn tie for 33rd. Individual Max Chan turned in his best performance of the week as he shot a 73 (+2) to move up one spot on the leaderboard and into a tie for 58th. Javier Delgadillo would finish tied for 59th to round of the group.
NUMBERS OF NOTE
- As a team, the Aggies posted 20 birdies in Tuesday’s final round. This included 13 birdies on the back nine.
- On the week, NM State paced the field in total pars with 176 to come in three better than the next closest team.
- Ethan Klose and Aidan Thomas were just two of six players to finish under par on the par 4s for the week as both Aggies shot one-under on the course’s par 4s.
- Aidan Thomas finished the week as one of just 10 players in the field to submit an eagle during the 54-hole tournament.
- Ethan Klose carded just six bogeys across the three rounds to finish the week as one of just seven players in the field with fewer than seven bogeys.
AGGIE LEADERBOARD
2. NM State – 284-292-285-861 (+9)
1. Ethan Klose – 70-71-67-208 (-5)
T6. Aidan Thomas – 70-71-72-213 (E)
T27. Mateo Payán – 73-73-74-220 (+7)
T33. Alexandre Bauduin – 71-78-72-221 (+8)
T58. Max Chan – 77-76-73-226 (+13)
T59. Javier Delgadillo – 74-77-76-227 (+14)
UP NEXT
The NM State men’s golf team will take nearly a month off before its next competition which is set for March 11-12 in Phoenix. There, they will compete in the GCU Invitational hosted by Grand Canyon University.
For complete coverage of NM State Men’s Golf, follow us on Twitter (@NMStateMGolf), Instagram (@NMStateMGolf) and Facebook (NM State Men’s Golf). You can also follow along with Aggie Men’s Golf via NMStateSports.com.
