The Fargo, N.D. native will be a senior with the Pilots this season

GRAND FORKS, N.D. -- University of Portland golfer Aaron Anderson won the North Dakota state men’s match play championship on Sunday, defeating 22-year-old Tim Kunick 4-and-3 at King’s Walk Golf Course. It is the first state title for the 23-year-old senior-to-be as he was 4-under par through 15 holes before Kunick conceded.

Anderson shot a 4-over par 76 on Thursday - also his 23rd birthday - to make the cut into the match play portion of the championship by merely one stroke. But Anderson rebounded and played confidently throughout match play and got off to a fast start in the final round. He did not commit a bogey and used birdies on No. 3 and No. 5 to take a two-hole lead early and put him in the driver’s seat. Kunick won just one hole, taking No. 10 with a birdie, but Anderson came back to win the next two holes with a birdie and a par to go 3-up and regain control of the match.

“I knew I could play with these guys, and with my birthday Thursday, I had a good feeling coming in that maybe some thing would go my way,” Anderson told the North Dakota Herald newspaper. “I feel especially confident in match play, because I make a lot of birdies. I might make a mistake here and there, but I can make up for it in match play with seven birdies in a row. So I was really looking forward to my chance here.”

As a high school golfer at Fargo South, he placed in the top 10 individually all four years at the state championships, but never won an individual title. Less than five years later, Anderson is now the North Dakota state champion.

OTHER PILOT MEN’S GOLF NOTES:
*Incoming freshman Blake Carley (Boise, Idaho/Timberline HS) tied for third place at the Pacific Northwest International American Junior Golf Association Tournament held at Trophy Lake Golf Course in Port Orchard, Wash. on June 20-23. Carley fired an even-par 216 (68-74-74) and finished five strokes back of medalist Eugene Wong.
*Incoming freshman Brad Blakley (Spokane, Wash./Gonzaga Prep HS) tied for 71st place at the highly competitive Rosauers Open Invitational held at Indian Canyon Golf Course in Spokane, Wash. Blakley was the 12th highest amateur after scoring a three-round total of even par 216 (70-70-76).
*Head coach Bill Winter made the U.S. Open Sectional Qualifier for the second year in a row after tying for second place with a 2-under 70 at Riverside Golf & Country Club in the regional qualifier. Winter placed 10th among the 18 players at sectionals.
*Former UP golfer Ryan Nelson finished eighth at the Oregon Open Invitational golf tournament at Aspen Lakes Golf Course in Sisters, Ore. in late June, carding a 3-under par 213 (70-72-71). Winter finished in a tie for 12th place at even par, while sophomore-to-be Matt Jacobsen shot a 229 and finished tied for 68th at the event.