It’s been a really good week for Watertown golfers Jake and Gabi Olson.
Six days after his sister Gabi shot a South Dakota Golf Association Junior Golf record 9-hole round of 28 (7-under par) at the Lakeview Golf Course in Mitchell, older brother Jake closed out the week by winning the 104th SDGA Men’s Match Play Championship on Sunday, July 13, 2025, at the Prairie Green Course in Sioux Falls.
It’s the first SDGA adult tourney champion for Jake Olson, who recently completed his freshman season at South Dakota State University.
Other area golfers also had strong showings in the SDGA Men’s, Women’s and Senior Match Play Championships. The men’s and women’s tourney were held in Sioux Falls and the senior events at the Central Valley Golf Course in Hartford.
Olson wins the tourney
Olson keeps re-writing history for Watertown golfers. The 2024 Watertown High School graduate won state Class AA individual championships in 2021 and 2023, becoming the first Arrow golfer to win two state titles since George Andree in 1949 and 1950. He also finished second in 2022. With Olson leading the way in 2023, the Arrow boys earned their first state golf championship since 1971.
He was a three-time Eastern South Dakota Conference champion in high school, three-time South Dakota Junior Golfer of the Year and two-time SDGA Junior Champion.
Olson, the son of Doug and Amber Olson, earned an excemption from qualifying for the Men’s Match Play Championship (an event that started in 1921) by reaching the semifinals in 2024. This year, he went 3-0 in his POD to reach the top 16.
“I didn’t get off the box the best, but I did a good job around the green saving myself and played pretty consistently throughout the whole tourney,” Olson said.
After reaching the top 16, Olson defeated Derek Anderson of Tea 3&2 and outlasted Jon Burns of Sioux Falls in 21 holes to make it to the semifinals. On Sunday, he won 3&2 over Russell Pick of Sioux Falls in the semifinals before topping Hayden Scott of Sioux Falls 3&2 in the championship.
Scott is a former Harrisburg High School golfer who will be a freshman teammate of Olson at SDSU this fall.
“It was good,” Olson said of his freshman season at SDSU. “I didn’t shoot as well as I’d have liked to but I qualified for lot of tournaments and got some good experience while learning how to play college golf.”
Olson is the first Watertown golfer to win the SDGA Men’s Match Play Championship since Dick Scott in 166. Don Dravland won twice (1953 and 1956) and Jack Rude (1946), Hobe Richards (1943), Bob Walrath (1932) and Bob Dugan (1936) each once.
Other Men’s Match Play Highlights
Other Watertown golfers in the 64-player field included former WHS golfers Ty Lenards (1-2), Stuart Stein (1-2), Charlie Jacobson (1-2), Nick Mahowald (1-1-1), Nick Heig (0-3) and Gabe Norberg (0-3).
Lenards won the state Class AA boys championship last October for the Arrows.
Women’s Match Play
In thre 49th SDGA Women’s Match Play event, McKenzie Mages of Sioux Falls defeated Allison Meyerink of Mitchell 5&4 to claim the title in the 32-player event.
The tourney opened in 1928 but wasn’t held from 1963 through 2008.
In the quarterfinals, Mages topped Olivia Braun of Aberdeen 5&3. Braun won the state Class AA high school girls title in June. Braun went 3-0 to be one of eight POD winners. She was the runner-up in the tourney in 2024.
Gabi Olson and former WHS golfer Avery Palmquist each went 2-1 and Kyley Wirebaugh of Aberdeen 1-1-1 in POD play. Only the POD winners reached the quarterfinals.
Senior & Masters Men’s Championships
Scott Hardie of Watertown advanced to the finals of the Master Men’s Championship at Hartford before falling 2&1 to Sam Prue of Sioux City.
Rob Dewit of Sioux Falls won the Senior Men’s Championship with a 2&1 victory over Brad Buche of Mitchell.
Senior Women’s Championships
Jennifer Stalley of Pierre won the Senior Women’s division with a 3&1 victory over Jackie Witlock of Aberdeen.
In the Silver Bracket, Dawn McInroy of Sioux Falls won 1 up over Pam Hoiland of Sioux Falls.
Follow Watertown Public Opinion sports reporter Roger Merriam on X (formerly known as Twitter) @PO_Sports or email: rmerriam@thepublicopinion.com
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