DeKALB – With the fall competition season starting, NIU men’s golf looks to keep the ball rolling after winning its first MAC Championship since 1985 in May. Junior Ben Sluzas headlines the Huskies’ lineup.
NIU finished last season notching five top-3 finishes including a first place finish at last year’s MAC Championship. The team averaged a score of 289.657 with a round low of 275 in the NCAA Salem Regional Tournament.
The Huskies are slated to compete in five tournaments this fall, opening the year at the Gopher Invitational hosted by the University of Minnesota.
With Tommy Dunsire graduating, Sluzas goes into the season as NIU’s top golfer. Sluzas finished last season with a scoring average of 72.314 with a round low 66 at the Hawkeye Invitational, matching his career low.
Last season, Sluzas competed in all 12 tournaments, earning three MAC Golfer of the Week awards along the way. His best finish came at the Robert Kepler Intercollegiate, winning the tournament and leading NIU to a third-place finish.
Graduate student transfer Josh Kirkham joins NIU as the second-best golfer after spending four years at Bradley University. At Bradley, Kirkham was the only golfer to compete in all 29 rounds and finished last season with a 72.09 stroke average in the spring.
Kirkham secured eight top-20 finishes including two top 10 finishes.
With a scoring average of 73.51, graduate student Zach Place is another key golfer for the Huskies. After competing in seven tournaments in the spring, Place found his round-low score of 67 in the first round of the NCAA Salem Regional Tournament.
Going into his fourth year, Place is NIU’s most experienced golfer. In his career, Place has played in 18 tournaments – his best finish coming at the 2022 MAC Championship, placing tied for seventh.
Newly added Arkansas State University transfer – Waakirchen, Germany native – junior Felix Krammar comes in as NIU’s fourth golfer. After two seasons at Arkansas State, Krammar notched four top-25 finishes and averaged a score of 73.94.
Prior to life in America, Krammar took third place at the German National Boys Championship in 2019 and scored a 212 at the Bavarian Championship in 2018, securing the win.
Sophomore Ian Bruchhauser rounds out NIU’s lineup as the fifth golfer. In the Spring 2023 season, Bruchhauser’s best performance was a second place finish at the Missouri State Intercollegiate.
Bruchhauser went on to finish the spring season with a 73.45 stroke average with his only other top-25 finish at the Hawkeye Invitational.
The Huskies tee off in their first tournament of the fall in an all-day event from Sept. 10 through Sept. 11 at the Gopher Invitational in Independence, Minnesota. Live stats will be available through GolfStat.
