Lose an All-American, replace him with a future All-American. Lather, rinse, repeat.
That sounds easier said than done, but it’s been the method of operations for Oklahoma men’s golf the last few years, and the Sooners may have done it again. On Monday head coach Ryan Hybl announced Luke Kluver would transfer from Kansas and join his Sooner squad with two years of eligibility remaining.
“We’re incredibly excited to add Luke to our family,” Hybl said via a release. “We know the type of player he is and what he brings to our program is invaluable. We can’t wait to get going.”
Back in 2021, Jonathan Brightwell transferred to Oklahoma after four years at UNC Greensboro and was a second-team All-American with the Sooners. Same for Chris Gotterup last year, who transferred to Oklahoma from Rutgers and went on to not only become a first-team All-American, but also win the Haskins Award as the best men’s college golfer of the year.
A message from the newest Sooner ⬇️ https://t.co/VzP161OLlm pic.twitter.com/eFi3bLTQ57
— Oklahoma Golf (@OU_MGolf) July 25, 2022
The standard has been set, and Kluver fits the mold. In three years with the Jayhawks he earned nine top-10 finishes, including three top fives with a win at the 2021 Gopher Invitational. The Sooners want to compete for a national title every year, which means a fair bit of match play. No problem for Kluver, who in 14 matches – all at the Big 12 Match Play Championship – boasts a 10-4 record.
“It feels great to know that I’m going to be part of a special team at Oklahoma,” Kluver said. “I chose OU because I believe that under this coaching staff and with the players that we have, we can truly achieve big things.”
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