BURLINGTON, N.C. – After producing the program's best 54-hole score in nearly eight years, Campbell rallied from a five-stroke deficit to win the Elon Phoenix Invitational Tuesday at Alamance Country Club.
Individual runner-up
Benjamin Killingstad tied the school record for lowest-individual 54-hole total (-16, 197),
Erik Johansson tied for fifth at 12-under and the Camels contributed up and down the lineup to deliver the team's first title of the season and third trophy in the last seven months.
Campbell trailed host Elon by five shots after through 36 holes, but the Camels were 10-under as a team in Tuesday's final round to finish 32-under (275-271-274—820) on the par-71 Donald Ross design.
"I'm really proud of the guys," said head coach
Matt Moot. "We've had some and lows already this season, but when you look at it, some of our shortfalls have been fixable and preventable. In the last few weeks, they've really put their minds toward that. I view that as positive; looking at yourself in the mirror and knowing what you can get better at. This week as a culmination and product of that hard work."
CU was two-under as a team on the 13th through 18th holes, while the Phoenix was 6-over during the same stretch. Killingstad, Johansson and
Joachim Larsen Tegner all birdied the par-five 17th and made par on the 18th. In addition to leading the 17-team field with 64 birdies, Campbell made the second-fewest bogeys (38).
Campbell's 2018-19 team, which included current PGA TOUR professionals Jesper Svensson and Pontus Nyholm, set the school record with a 48-under-par 816 (269-274-273) at the Golfweek Program Challenge (Sept. 9-11, 2018), then finished 34-under (277-269-272—818) on a par-71 layout one month later at the OBX Intercollegiate.
In a field that included three CAA rivals, the Camels finished four shots better than conference foe Elon (270-271-283—824, -28) and nine clear of third-place Western Carolina (275-277-277—829, -23). Defending CAA champion UNCW tied for sixth at 15-under as a team.
A junior from Blommenholm, Norway, Killingstad (67-64-66—197) equaled his best collegiate finish by matching Svensson's 16-under par score (65-64-68—197) at the 2018 OBX Intercollegiate. In Tuesday's final round, Killingstad was 3-under with a clean scorecard through the first nine holes. He wrapped bogeys on 10 and 13 around two birdies, then was 2-under over the last five holes. Killingstad's tap-in par on the par-four 18th secured the title for the Camels.
Killingstad tied for first in the 108-golfer field in par-5 scoring (-9) and T2nd with 18 birdies. He finished T3 in par-4 scoring (-6) and on the par-3 holes (-1). He matched his collegiate-best runner-up finish when Campbell won the team title last March at the Cleveland Golf Palmetto Intercollegiate.
Tom Haberer of Wake Forest (66-62-68—196) won individual honors at 17-under par, one stroke ahead of Killingstad.
Johansson produced his best collegiate 54-hole score (66-68-67—201) and earned a second-straight top-5 finish with a bogey-free, four-under 67 Tuesday. He made 17 birdies, which field for fourth in the field, was T3 on the par-3s (-1), T8 on the par-4s (-4) and T13 on the par-5s (-7).
A senior from Hollviken, Sweden, Johansson tied for the fifth-lowest 54-hole total in program history. Only Killingstad, Svensson (twice) and Nyholm have signed for better 3-round scores in Campbell's Division I era (since 1977-78).
Joachim Larsen Tegner entered the day plus-two overall and dropped to 4-over after his first three holes. However, he was bogey-free and 3-under over the last 15 holes and tied for 51st (72-72-70—214).
Guillermo Ochoa (76-67-71--214) played his final 36 holes 4-under and finished T51. His 4-under 67 was his best round as a collegiate golfer.
Logan Graf (70-73-77—220) was T83, while
William Sundborn was T59 (72-70-73—215) while competing as an individual.
In addition to the 54-hole standards the Camels set on Tuesday, Killingstad's 36-hole total (131) tied for second-lowest in Campbell history. Killingstad produced his best 3 rounds of the season, including a collegiate low-tying 64 Monday afternoon.
As a team, the Camels notched their best three 18-hole scores of the year and tied for the third-lowest 36-hole mark in program history (275-271—546).
The Camels close their fall schedule Sunday and Monday (Oct. 18-19) at the Furman Intercollegiate.
Elon Phoenix Invitational
Elon, N.C. | Alamance CC
Oct. 12-13, 2026 | Par 71, 6867 Yards
Final Team Results: 1. Campbell 275-271-274—820, 2. Elon 270-271-283—824, 3. Western Carolina 275-277-277—829, 4. Presbyterian 279-280-276—835, 5. Appalachian State 277-274-285—836, T6. George Washington 283-270-284—837, T6. UNC Wilmington 273-282-282—837, T6. Old Dominion 283-275-279—837, 9. Radford 286-281-275—842, 10. Charleston Southern 292-278-281—851, 11. Long Island 283-287-287—857, 12. Gardner-Webb 291-283-285—859, 13. West Georgia 294-277-293—864, 14. Longwood 291-287-288—866, 15. Francis Marion 297-280-292—869, 16. Queens 299-286-285—870, 17. Temple 296-294-293—883.
Final Individual Leaders: 1. Tom Haberer (Wake Forest)* 66-62-68—196
, 2. Benjamin Killingstad (Campbell) 67-64-66—197, 3. Ethan Paschal (North Carolina)* 73-63-63—199, 4. Brody Tidwell (Appalachian State) 65-69-66—200,
T5. Erik Johansson (Campbell) 66-68-67—210, T5. Lorenzo Rodriguez (Wake Forest)* 67-67-67—201. *individual competitor
Other Campbell Individuals: T51.
Joachim Larsen Tegner 72-72-70—214, T51.
Guillermo Ochoa 76-67-71—214, T59.
William Sundborn* 72-70-73—215, T83.
Logan Graf 70-73-77—220.
The Course: Alamance CC (Par 71, 6871 Yards)
The 18-hole Donald Ross design is a tree-lined course on a compact property without dramatic landforms, and most of its par 4s and par 5s bend or are blind from the tee. The greens are undulating and fast rather than crowned. Bob Cupp rebuilt the course from Ross's plans in 1999, and the greens and bunkers were restored again in 2020, when new tees were added. Alamance has hosted a number of prestigious golf events, including The North Carolina State Amateur Championship, CGA Mid-Amateur Championship, NAIA National Championship (1982), Carolinas/Virginia Team Masters and U.S. Open Qualifying on many occasions.
