NORMAN, Okla. – Five Illinois State golfers – TJ Barger, Alex McCulla, Will Troy, Felix van Dijk, and Parker Wisdom – have been named to the 2023-24 Cobalt Golf All-America Scholar list for NCAA Division I.
To be eligible for Cobalt Golf All-America Scholar nomination, an individual must be a sophomore, junior or senior both academically and athletically. In addition, they must participate in 50% of their team's competitive rounds, have a stroke average under 76.0, and maintain a minimum cumulative career grade-point average of 3.2. A recipient must also be of high moral character and be in good standing at their college or university.
Illinois State was one of 25 NCAA Division I schools to have at least five recipients on the list.
Barger, a Bloomington native, closed his opening season as a Redbird with a season stroke average of 72.9 – 14th lowest in a season in school history – with 14 of his 32 rounds come in at or under par. He had one top-five finish on the year at the Mobile Bay Intercollegiate, where he tied for fifth overall with a career-low-tying tournament score of 211. He had seven rounds under 70 on the year, including a season-low 68 in four different rounds. He had a four-tournament stretch during the spring where he was under par for three tournaments, including back-to-back tournaments where he finished five strokes under par.
McCulla earned an at-large spot into the West Lafayette NCAA Regional during the season and averaged 71.4 strokes per round on the season – the second-lowest season scoring average in program history. He had 21 of his 35 rounds at or under par, and added four top-10 finishes, including earning medalist honors at the season-opening Island Resort Intercollegiate. In the season-opener he set a new program record for lowest tournament score, becoming the first golfer in ISU history to card a score under 200 with a 17-under three-round score of 199. During that tournament he carded a career-low 64, which is the third-lowest single-round score in program history.
Troy, a native of Naperville, Illinois, played in 20 rounds with a stroke average of 72.0 during the year – the fifth-lowest season scoring average in program history. Of his 20 rounds, 11 were at or under par, including a career-low 66 at the Badger Individual on October 2, where he tied for second place in the field. He tied for 14th at the Dorado Beach Collegiate after a rain-shortened 36-hole tournament score of 137 – the second-lowest 36-hole tournament score in program history.
van Dijk ended his Redbird career by playing in 26 rounds as a senior, averaging 72.3 strokes per round, which is the seventh-lowest season scoring average by a Redbird since the inception of the program. He had a dozen of his 26 rounds come at or under par, including a program-record 36-hole score of 135 at the Dorado Beach Collegiate. He carded a 54-hole score of 207 at the Dayton Flyer Invitational – which is the 13th-best three-round tournament score in school history. He had four top-10 finishes, and two top-five finishes (second place at the Dayton Flyer Invitational, and fifth at the Dorado Beach Collegiate). His career scoring average of 73.75 is the eighth-lowest career total in program history.
Wisdom, who in the coming season will be starting as a graduate assistant with the golf program, averaged 72.8 strokes per round in 32 rounds during the season. He had a dozen times where his score saw him at or under par, and he had a top-10 finish at the Hawkeye Invitational in April. He had five tournaments during the season where his aggregate score was at or under par, including a season-low 208 (-5) at the Hawkeye Invitational – which is tied for the 20th-lowest tournament score in school history. His career scoring average of 74.134 is the 11th-lowest in a career in Redbird history.
The Redbirds closed the 2023-24 season with school records in scoring average (285.2) and total rounds by individuals at or under par (96). The team carded six of the 11 lowest 54-hole tournament scores in school history, including a school-record 832 at the Border Olympics, while tying the school individual round record with a 273 – also at the Border Olympics.
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