MADISON, Wis. —
Griffin Barela and
Cameron Huss were both selected to compete as individuals in the NCAA Men's Golf Tournament. They will head to the Columbus Regional at Ohio State University Golf Club May 15-18.
They will be the first Badgers to make an appearance in the NCAA tournament since Jordan Hahn in 2019. Before Hahn, the last Badger to make an appearance was Dan Woltmann in 2009. Both Barela and Huss have seen success on the course with the Badgers, though one is a veteran and one still an underclassman.
Barela is closing his collegiate golf career, having spent the last five seasons at Wisconsin.
"Griffin is one of the most competitive golfers that I have had the honor to coach," said head coach Mike Wilson. "Every single tournament round he brings maximum effort and always finds a way to get the ball in the hole in as few shots as possible. Griffin represents what it means to be a Badger and I look forward to watching him compete at NCAAs."
Barela is in his final season with the Badgers and has left his mark on the program. He has played in 123 rounds with Wisconsin, averaging 73.02 over his five seasons. He set a career-low 18-hole score of 66 this season in the second round of Hootie at Bulls Bay. His 36-hole career-low was a 136 shot his sophomore season at the Hawkeye Invitational and his 54-hole career-low was a 203 also shot at that tournament.
The Lakewood, Colorado's career-best finish was T1 at the D.A. Weibring Invitational his freshman season. Over the past five seasons he has recorded four top-five finishes, eight top-10 finishes and 23 top-25 finishes. This season alone he finished top-25 in all nine tournaments.
Barela holds the record for Lowest Career Average and Lowest Season Average in program history. His career average of 73.02 (2017-22) puts him ahead of previous holder Jordan Hahn, who recorded an average of 73.08 from 2015-2019. His 2021-22 season average of 71.07 also beats out previous record holder Hahn, who recorded an average of 71.69 during the 2018-19 season.
"Holding these records is definitely something that I'm proud of," said Barela. "I was teammates with Jordan for a few years and witnessed just how good he was throughout his career to set those records, so to break them is definitely rewarding. Hopefully though this program continues to improve on the track we are on and those records don't last for long."
Barela appears in the team record book a handful of other times. Here's an overview of what he's contributed to the program:
- T9th lowest 18-hole score, 66 (3/28/22)
- T6th lowest 36-hole score, 136 (4/20/19)
- T9th lowest 26-hole score, 137 (3/27-28/22)
- T19th lowest 36-hole score, 139 (9/26-27/21)(10/2-3/21)
- 3rd lowest 54-hole score, 203 (4/20-21/19)
- T9th lowest 54-hole score, 208 (10/2-4/21) (2/13-15/22)
- T17th lowest 54-hole score, 210 (10/7-8/18) (11/1-3/19)
- Lowest Individual Season Average in Program History, 71.07 (2021-22)
- 6th lowest individual season average, 72.78 (2018-19)
- 10th lowest individual season average, 73.33 (2019-20)
- 22nd lowest individual season average, 74.06 (2017-18)
- Lowest Career Average in Program History, 73.02 (2017-22) (8,982 strokes/ 123 rounds)
- One of nine Badgers to record a 1st/T1st finish
Barela is also a two-time Srixon/Cleveland GCAA All-American Scholar, three-time Academic All-Big Ten and a 2021-22 Big Ten Preseason Honoree. This season he was a unanimous nominee for First Team All-Big Ten. He has accomplished a lot in his five years at Wisconsin.
"I plan to turn pro later this summer and play the Korn Ferry Tour Q School," said Barela. "I'm excited to continue to watch this team improve from afar and start contending for championships."
Huss is only a sophomore and will be making his first appearance in an NCAA tournament.
Over the past two seasons he has averaged 72.60, with a 71.93 this season. He shot a career-low 18-hole score of 66 in the third round of the Steelwood Collegiate Invite, a career-low 36-hole score of 139 at the Rich Harvest Farms Intercollegiate and a 54-hole career-low of 206 also at Rich Harvest Farms.
This season alone he has recorded six top-25 finishes with his best finish at the Rich Harvest Farms Intercollegiate where he was runner-up. He also recorded two top-25 finishes in his brief freshman season.
As an underclassman, he has already played in 42 rounds. That is every single team round that has taken place since he made his collegiate debut last season at the Kiawah Invitational.
"The whole season was kind of a roller coaster," said Huss. "It's just a relief now to know I got through because it was a lot of hard work that kind of all built up to that moment so it's cool to know that I'm going through now."
