- First Year of Competition: 1984
- Head Coach: Jay Moseley (2011 A-Sun Coach of the Year)
- A-Sun All-Conference Honorees: 6
- A-Sun All-Freshman Honorees: 5
- A-Sun Player of the Week Awards: 7
- A-Sun All-Academic Honors: 32
Fresh off the program’s first appearance in the NCAA Championship last spring in Stillwater, Okla., the Owls look to build on their 2011 season that also included being crowned Atlantic Sun Conference Champions as the team continues to improve every year. Head coach Jay Moseley, the reigning A-Sun Coach of the Year and a squad led by Second Team All-American and A-Sun Player of the Year Jeff Karlsson as well as A-Sun First Team Honoree Matt Nagy return to lead the pre-season No. 47- ranked Black and Gold.
The return of Karlsson, who finished 2011 at No. 27 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings, is the greatest asset for the Owls, as he finished second in Division I in stroke average with a stunning 70.6. In 10 tournaments, Karlsson posted three victories, eight top-10 finishes and a tie for 20th at the NCAA Championship. He notched titles at the Sam Hall Intercollegiate and Atlantic Sun Conference Championship and co-medaled at the Seminole Intercollegiate.
Kennesaw State's experience isn’t limited to only Karlsson and Nagy, as junior Ben Greene and sophomore Jonathan Klotz have both played important roles in the Owls lineup early in their collegiate careers. Greene and Klotz finished three and four on the team in stroke average in 2011, as Greene posted a 74.1 while Klotz finished at 74.9 in his first season with the Owls, with both earning A-Sun All-Freshmen Team Honors.
The Owls talented and deep roster is further-enhanced by the addition of two-heralded freshman – Jimmy Beck and Austin Vick. Both Beck and Vick constructed illustrious junior careers, with Beck winning the 2011 AT&T Jr. Classic, while also recording top-25 finishes at the Rolex Tournament of Champions and the PING Invitational.
In August, Golfweek’s Asher Wildman listed the Owls No. 47 in the nation among his top-60 men’s programs heading into the 2011-12 campaign. With four starters returning, Kennesaw State has even bigger goals this season after the success of a year ago, with their success of a year ago opening the door for the Owls to battle for top honors in state of Georgia against the likes of perennial powers Georgia, Georgia Tech and Augusta State.
The talent is there, and the Owls have a Player of the Year candidate in Jeff Karlsson. If Kennesaw State shows it can compete with the top programs in the nation week in and week out, the Owls could find themselves battling for one of the elite eight spots at Riviera Country Club in the NCAA Championship this June.
