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2022 Division II Jack Nicklaus Award Finalists Announced

NORMAN, Okla. – Five finalists have been named for the 2022 Division II Jack Nicklaus National Player of the Year Award. They are Beck Burnette of Lee, Charles Delong of Grand Valley State, Jake Doggett of Midwestern State, AJ Ewart of Barry, and Austin Fulton of West Georgia. The winner will be announced on June 5 at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio, and presented by award namesake Jack Nicklaus during the final round of the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday.

Burnette, the GSC Player of the Year, is ranked fourth in Golfstat’s individual rankings with a 70.47 scoring average. According to Coach Maupin, he has had “one of the best, if not the best” season in school history, where he finished in the top-10 at seven tournaments for the Flames. 

The GLIAC Player of the Year and DeWitt, Michigan native, Delong placed in the top-five eight times in 2021, including winning medalist honors at the Central/Midwest Regional. He was named GLIAC Golfer of the Week four times and enters the Division II Championships ranked 17th in Golfstat’s rankings.   

While working towards his Masters of Business Administration degree, Doggett helped the Mustangs to their first NCAA Division II Championship appearance. The two-time Lone State Conference Player of the Year and Midwestern State Outstanding Male Student-Athlete finished in the top-10 in each 2021-22 tournament he played in and recently had a streak of 20 par-or-better rounds played. Doggett, who is ranked third in Golfstat, will be representing Team USA in the 2022 Arnold Palmer Cup later this summer.

Ewart won seven tournaments this season, including four straight and six of the last seven he’s played in. His seven victories, the last coming at the NCAA South Regional, are tied for a single-season school record, and he is the fastest Buccaneer to reach 10 career wins. The SSC Golfer of the Year is currently ranked first through Golfstate in DII with a 69.48 scoring average.

Fulton transferred from Mississippi State after playing four years in Starkville and instantly made his mark for Coach Selders. The First-Team All-GSC won three times in 2021-22 and is ranked second in Golfstat’s individual rankings with a 70.16 scoring average. 

All five finalists are competing May 16-20 at the 2022 NCAA Division II Championships at TPC Michigan in Dearborn, Michigan.

Nicklaus, a Big Ten and NCAA Champion at Ohio State, helped inspire and create the Jack Nicklaus Award in 1988. The award is now presented to the National Player of the year in NCAA Divisions I, II, and III, as well as NAIA and NJCAA.