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57 S ophomore Mac McClear entered the final round of the Spartan Collegiate on March 9 with a mission. Aer notching a career-best score of 66 in the first round, he sat tied for fih following a 3-over par second round. Two back from the leader, McClear felt no nervousness. "I was confident," says McClear. "I had good preparation leading up to the event. I knew I was playing well and if I stayed patient I would be in contention and have a good chance to win." Still, despite sinking three birdies, McClear trailed on the individual leaderboard with five holes remaining. en, something happened: the Illinois native unleashed a flurry of five birdies to finish with a 7-under par 65. "at back nine at Sea Island will forever be one of my greatest memories as a coach," says head coach Tyler Stith. "He and Alex [Schaake] were in the zone and it was a joy to watch unfold." McClear clinched his first individual tournament title as a Hawkeye and delivered Iowa the team championship by a single stroke. His round of 65 marks the fourth-best 18-hole score in program history, and his 10-under par 206 is the fih-best 54-hole finish at Iowa. For an underclassman, the payoff was years in the making. "Golf can be hard, and you don't win oen, so it's always nice to get a win," says McClear. "It validates my hard work and what we do as a team. It gives me and the team confidence moving forward, knowing that what we're doing works and can produce results." "I don't think anyone would argue, Mac is the most consistent operator on our team," says Stith. "He arrives ready to work every practice and training session. He is a relentless worker and his recent success is no accident." Following his freshman season, McClear identified deficiencies in his game and came up with a game plan to address them. "Last year I chipped and putted well, but my ball- striking wasn't what it could be," says McClear. "I looked at what I could improve and made a plan of how I was going to do it. en, over the offseason I focused on that plan and was able to execute those fixes. So far I feel like I am doing a lot better." His hard work is paying dividends. Currently ranked No. 33 in the GolfStat individual standings, McClear has solidified himself as a key starter on a veteran Iowa team that has experienced a breakout season. Aer turning heads with a second place outing at Big Ten Match Play, the Hawkeyes earned the best finish among seven conference teams at the Kiawah Invitational and brought home the Spartan Collegiate trophy. McClear says he is focused strictly on maintaining team success. "e team goal is always to make it to nationals and see what damage we can do there," says McClear. "I didn't have a personal goal this year. I wanted to see how good I can get and how I can help the team in that process." APRIL SCHEDULE April 17-18 Hawkeye Invitational April 24-25 at Robert Kepler Intercollegiate (Columbus, Ohio) April 30-May 2 at Big Ten Championships (Carmel, Indiana)