Jack Dudeck led the Golden State Athletic Conference Men’s Golf Championships after all three rounds, capping off his individual victory with an even-round of 71 on Wednesday at Briarwood Country Club in Sun City West, Arizona.

With the win, Dudeck becomes the first Mustang to win the GSAC individual title since Blake McPherson in 2016.

“I felt comfortable out here,” Dudeck said. “The course seemed to suit my game, so I just went out there and played how I know how to, sticking to the process.”

That process began a few months ago when things weren’t quite going his way on the course.

“This week all goes back to earlier this spring when he wasn’t performing and wasn’t in the lineup,” Master’s head coach Jacob Hicks said of Dudeck. “That really lit a fire under him. From a spiritual perspective, that was a trial that really pointed him to Jesus.

“For golfers, it’s an individual sport so it’s easy to base your self-worth and identity off your performance and score. I think the Lord gave him peace and that’s impacted his performance the rest of this spring.”

Hicks said Dudeck’s mentality set him apart over the last few days.

“When he came in as a freshman, he was nowhere near where he is now mentally,” Hicks said. “His attitude and outlook on the game has improved dramatically and I think that’s why he’s really starting to see some success.”

After consecutive one-under rounds of 70 to start the tournament, Dudeck entered Wednesday’s third and final round with a four-stroke lead over Mason Domecq from Ottawa University Arizona. That advantage quickly extended to five after Dudeck birdied the 10th hole to start his final round.

“It was huge, especially since I birdied that hole all three days,” Dudeck said. “I was right back on track and knew what I was doing, so it gave me an extra level of confidence.”

That advantage over Domecq then increased to six after Dudeck’s impressive up and down saved par on the par-three 11th. Bogeys on the par-three 14th and par-five 17th reduced Dudeck’s lead to five, as Dudeck finished the back-nine in one-over par.

Then on the front-nine, back-to-back birdies on the par-four second and par-three third put Dudeck under par for the round. Despite the consecutive birdies, his lead at the top was cut to three after 13 holes, when Domecq birdied holes one through four.

“I knew if I did what I know how to do, it was going to go my way,” Dudeck said of his mentality when his playing partner birdied four-straight holes. “Being four shots ahead going into the round, I knew I had a little bit of a cushion to work with.”

Dudeck was able to stave off Domecq over the final five holes with two birdies, ultimately winning by five strokes. The TMU junior came within 20 yards of driving the green on the final hole of the day, the 340-yard ninth, chipping on and then sinking a birdie putt.

At two-under overall, Dudeck finished as the only player to shoot under par for the tournament.

“I was hitting it really well off the tee and putting it really well,” Dudeck said. “Out here, if you can do both of those, you’ll be in the right spot.”

That birdie putt created anticipation as to who would claim the team title, as No. 11 Ottawa held a narrow two-stroke lead with all players through 14 holes. However, OUAZ held off both Master’s and Arizona Christian to win the team title by a single stroke, with TMU and ACU both tied for second.

“It’s sad we came up one shot short, but this was God’s plan for us this week and we trust that,” Hicks said. “The guys left it all out there. We can be content with that, knowing we gave it our best effort.”

Josh Kehl saved his best round for last, shooting a one-over 72 to move him up to 18th overall for the tournament at 18-over. Karsten Briley shot a 74 to finish seventh overall at nine-over, while Luke Brueckner matched that third-round score to tie-for-10th. Tyler Smith’s final round of 76 resulted in a three-way tie, along with Brueckner, at 12-over.

“Our game plan was not to focus on the leaderboard but to work our process,” Hicks said. “I saw a lot of great stuff today. There was a lot of positive energy out of every guy.”

Dudeck led the tournament with 13 birdies, followed by Briley with 12. Dudeck tied for the best score of any player on par-fives at five-under and was the only player in the tournament to shoot under par on par-four holes, shooting one-under. Brueckner led all players with 37 pars, three more than any other player.

On Wednesday, the TMU Women moved up from sixth to fifth place as a team, shooting their best round of the tournament. Isabella Huff shot an 87 to place 13th, while Sierra Pilgrim finished one shot behind after her third-round 88. Faith Ellms recorded her best round by five strokes, as her 89 left her in 21st position.

Faith Ellms.

The Master’s Men, ranked 25th in the latest NAIA Coaches’ Poll, will now have to wait and see if they receive an at-large bid to the NAIA National Championships in Silvis, Illinois at TPC Deere Run on May 18-21.

“I’d say it’s really up in the air,” Hicks said of his team’s chances to receive an at-large berth. “It just depends on how the conference championships end up and what the raters think of us. It could go either way. What we do have going for us is that we’ve been inside the top-25 for the majority of the year, so that helps us.”

Regardless, Dudeck booked his ticket to the national tournament after winning the GSAC individual title.

“I’m just really happy to walk away with some trophy with Jack winning,” Hicks said.