BYU’s Akina, Utah’s Jimenez finish 2-3 at Big 12 golf championships
Apr 29, 2026, 6:12 PM | Updated: Apr 30, 2026, 10:13 am
Kihei Akina lines up his putt on the 17th green during the final round of the 2025 Utah Open at Riverside Country Club in Provo on Sunday, Aug. 17, 2025. (Photo: Rio Giancarlo, Deseret News)
(Photo: Rio Giancarlo, Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY — BYU’s Kihei Akina fired a record-setting round and three more under or around par to finish second at his Big 12 golf championships Wednesday at Prairie Dunes Country Club in Hutchinson, Kansas.
The freshman standout from Alpine broke a Big 12 championship Monday when he carded 7-under-par 63 in the first round. The former Lone Peak High star then added rounds of 71, 67 and 71 to finish at 8-under 272, three strokes behind individual champion Preston Stout of Oklahoma State.
Utah’s Sergio Jimenez shot back-to-back rounds of 63 in the third and fourth lap around the track to finish third.
“It was a great experience and a great learning lesson for me to be in that position in one of the biggest tournaments I’ve played in,” Akina said in a news release. “I let a few shots slip coming down the last nine, but still gave myself a chance to win. My game is in a good spot, and I’m excited to see where we get called for regionals.”
The Cowboys won the team title at 10-under, eight strokes ahead of second-place Arizona. The Utes finished sixth at 15-over, and BYU tied for seven with Baylor at 18-over.
Kihei putting his name in Big 12 record books✍️ pic.twitter.com/OrKc0Q241T
— BYU Men's Golf (@BYUmgolf) April 28, 2026
Who won the Big 12 golf championship?
Stout was one of two Oklahoma State golfers to finish in the top-11 as the Pokes cruised to the wire-to-wire win. Ethan Fang added an eighth-place finish at 1-under for Oklahoma State.
It’s the third consecutive conference individual title for Stout, and a consecutive championship for the Cowboys for the program’s 13th overall.
Oklahoma State clinched the Big 12’s automatic berth to the NCAA Regionals. No. 23 BYU and the rest of the conference will learn if its regional fate next Wednesday, May 6 during the selection show broadcast on the Golf Channel.
Regional play begins May 18-20 at six sites nationally.
How did BYU’s Kihei Akina do?
Akina’s runner-up finish marks the best individual performance by a Cougar golfer since Zac Jones won the West Coast Conference individual title in 2023. Ranked No. 7 nationally, it’s the best finish by a BYU freshman since Peter Kuest won the WCC championship in 2017.
Even in his 1-over final round — when Praise Dunes play more than a 1.5 strokes tough than the previous round collectively — Akina carded four birdies on the back nine, as well as an eagle on the par-5 seventh.
“Kihei continues to play outstanding golf,” said BYU coach Bruce Brockbank, who announced last week that he will retire after 41 seasons as a player and coach at BYU. “Finishing runner-up in the Big 12 is impressive for a freshman. Fun to watch a kid that plays golf at the level he is playing the last five events.”
BYU”s Tyson Shelley finished 46th at 10-over 290, and teammate Simon Kwon was two shots back in 54th.
Let’s go Sergio 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
✅ Individual 3rd place Big 12 Championship finish
✅ All-Championship Team #GoUtes pic.twitter.com/Ot7i58x3iI
— Utah Men's Golf (@UtesGolf) April 29, 2026
How did Utah’s Sergio Jimenez do?
Jimenez tied Akina’s Big 12 championship record on the second day of competition, then shot 3-under 67 in Wednesday’s final round to take sole possession of third place.
Brandon Robinson and Davis Johnson added a pair of 1-over 71 final-round finishes for the Utes, who shot the second-best score of the final round to surge into sixth.
“Our last 36 holes were really, really good,” Utah coach Garrett Clegg said. “I mean, each of our players just fought like crazy. It was not easy at all today. It was extremely difficult out there. The greens were tough, the whole location was brutal, but I’m really proud of our team, and how they all finished. All five guys played amazing golf.”
