IOWA CITY, Iowa – University of Iowa junior Ronan Kleu will represent his home country of Switzerland this week at the prestigious Spirit International Amateur Championship at Whispering Pines Golf Club in Trinity, Texas
Top amateur golfers from 20 countries will compete in teams of four to win gold in five concurrent events over the course of the week. The field of nations spans four continents and includes Argentina, Belgium, Canada, Chinese Taipei, Colombia, Denmark, England, Finland, France, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, Norway, Scotland, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States.
Teams will be comprised of two men and two women competing in a 54-hole, four-ball stroke play event, with five concurrent competition categories. The team competition will take the three best 54-hole scores from each country’s four-player contingent, while the men’s and women’s team competitions combine scores from each nation’s duos. The men’s and women’s individual competitions award the top 54-hole rounds by individual golfers.
Spirit Invitational alumni include 16 PGA Tour winners, such as Australia’s Jason Day and Jordan Spieth of the United States. Past invitees have gone on to win over 650 professional titles, 25 major championships and earn 17 Olympic appearances.
Kleu joined the Hawkeyes this season from Columbus State, where he earned Peach Belt Conference Player of the Year honors and led the conference with a 70.3 season stroke average. Kleu has earned two top ten finishes in his first three outings with the Hawkeyes, including a tie for sixth place (208, -8) at the Marquette Invitational and a tie for eighth (206, -4) at the Notre Dame Fighting Irish Classic.
The Spirit International takes place Nov. 4-6 at Whispering Pines Golf Club.