Braxton Kuntz

Photo by: Josh Brunette

Photo by: Collin Phillips/Ball State Athletics

Photo by: Michael Hickey

Photo by: Collin Phillips/Ball State Athletics

Photo by: Brayden Goins / Ball State Athletics

Mason Rudolph Challenge, Day 3: April 7, 2024

Photo by: Josh Shelton

Mason Rudolph Challenge, Day 2: April 6, 2024

Mason Rudolph Challenge, Day 1: April 5, 2024

Photo by: Josh Shelton

Class:
Senior
Hometown:
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Prev School:
Nicholls State
High School:
Linden Christian School

Honors and Awards:
Named to 2025 Team Canada Roster
MAC Golfer of the Week (Sept. 13, 2024)
MAC Golfer of the Week (April 3, 2024)
All-Southland Conference First Team (2022-23)
Southland All-Academic First Team (2022-23)

Winnipeg Free Press (Aug. 8, 2024): B reezy's Kuntz Sees Run Fall Short at Canadian Amateur
Winnipeg Free Press (July 25, 2024): Kuntz G rinds Out Historical Win
Winnipeg Free Press (July 22, 2024): Kuntz On Course For Golf History
Global News (Aug. 23, 2023): Provincial Men's Amateur Champ Braxton Kuntz Sets Sights on Making Manitoba Open Cut

Canadian lefty became a regular starter for the Cardinals after a transfer from Nicholls State and a 2023 all-conference season with the Colonels ... Says Ball State coach Mike Fleck: "During his short time with us, Braxton has had tremendous impact. He is a diligent worker. He is probably our longest player off the tee and he has the skillset to be an All-MAC player." ... Kuntz finished his first season at Ball State with a flurry -- a 71.87 average over eight rounds leading into the MAC Championships, and perhaps the finest round ever by a Ball State golfer, firing a course record at the UNC Finley Golf Club and tying a Ball State record with a 62 in the opening round of the NCAA Chapel Hill Regional ... he led the field after 18 holes with what was the best opening round of an NCAA Regional since at least 1998 ... first Canadian golfer in Mike Fleck's long tenure as Ball State coach.

2023-24 (Jr.): Averaged 73.21 strokes over 34 rounds during his first season at Ball State ... a late-season surge featured a 71.87 stroke average in eight April rounds prior to the MAC Championships ... following the MAC Championships, he fired a 6-under 66 at Broadmoor Country Club in Indianapolis to finish in the top five in a local qualifier for the U.S. Open ... shooting his lowest round of the year, he advanced to a second-stage final qualifying event for the U.S. Open, and just days later he shocked the college golf world with the lowest opening round (62) in an NCAA Regional since at least 1998 … he was Ball State’s top finisher in each of the Cardinals’ last two events prior to the MAC Championships, and again in the NCAA Regional … his late-season assault began when he was chosen to play in an individual event at Butler University’s Don Benbow Invitational just days before Vanderbilt’s Mason Rudolph Championship (April 5-7) … rain washed out the final round of the Benbow Invite, but through two rounds on April 1, Kuntz finished in a tie for third place with a pair of 2-under 68s … they were then his lowest rounds of the college season, and the third-place finish was his first top-10 finish since joining the Ball State team as a transfer.

BEFORE BALL STATE: Competed two seasons at Nicholls State University in Thibodeaux, Louisiana ... 2022-23 (So.): Appeared in six events and played 18 rounds, posting a 72.33 stroke average ... best finish was fourth place, out of 70 participants, at the 2023 Gulf Coast Collegiate (74-70-71--215) ... first team all-league selection in the Southland Conference. 2021-22 (Fr.): Competed in all eight events... had the second-lowest stroke average on the team, averaging 74.7 in 24 rounds... claimed a third-place finish in HBU's Colin Montgomerie where he shot a low-round 70 and a 71 for a 2-under 214... followed with a seventh-place showing in the Nicholls Intercollegiate, posting an even 216... also had rounds below par in the Pinetree Intercollegiate (71) and Bayou City Collegiate Classic (71).

HIGH SCHOOL: Posted a 2020 Tournament scoring average of 70.6 strokes at Linden Christian High School... took fourth place in the Manitoba Men's Amateur... earned runner-up in the Manitoba Junior Championship and was a Provincial Finalist for Male Golfer of the Year... took second in the 2019 Canada Western Games and the year prior, claimed the championship at the MJT Tour National Championship in Phoenix, Arizona... was one of only 12 junior golfers from Canada who competed for a spot on the National Junior Team... received Honors with great distinction in 2021 with an over 95% average.

PERSONAL: Hails from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada ... born Nov. 14, 2003... son of Danny and Irene Kuntz... dad was a professional hockey player ... has a younger sister, Brandi... majoring in finance ... was 2022 Manitoba Junior Champion ... Shot a 69, 71 (-4) in a PGA Tour Canada event ... 2021, 2022 Golf Manitoba Player of the Year ... tied for 5th at the 2022 Canadian Junior Golf Championship ... 2021, 2022 Manitoba Amateur Champion.