Young Alumni Win 2025 Fricker Cup!

Fricker Cup 2025: A Record-Breaking Day in Columbus

The 11th annual Fricker Cup brought together 44 enthusiastic participants on a stunning September afternoon at Safari Golf Club in Columbus, Ohio — marking the largest turnout for a non-reunion year event. A special shoutout goes to the twelve recent graduates (Classes of 2022–2025) whose presence plus a dozen more first time participants helped set this new record! 

The event pulled in Brothers from beyond Columbus including some from elsewhere in Ohio and Indiana, many brothers from Chicago, one from Atlanta and one from Spain!

The great weather at the Safari Golf Club was a huge relief for those that remember the last time the event was held in Columbus (Dublin Weather Greets the 2018 Fricker Cup Participants!) 

The tournament, first held in 2014, has become a cherished tradition — and this year’s contest delivered a thrilling finish worthy of Fricker lore.

New Champions Crowned. 

Brothers Jacob Mileski IC ’22 (Charter Class) and Paxton Thompson IC ’22 claimed their first Fricker Cup victory with a net score of 63 — 13 under par. Their win, by a single stroke over three-time champions Scott Rich IC ’89 and Tim Ruppelli IC ’87, marks the first time post-rechartering alumni have earned the honor of touching the Cup without invoking the Curse of Fricker.

Daniel Yoho IC ’11 playing in the tournament won both closest to the pin contests including the split-the-pot hole with $420 in going to support the Chapter's Scholarship fund (Stephen Alonzo Jackson Weekend of Giving in March 2026.) 

Seventeen Alumni also responded to the call to become or update their Alumni Docent profiles (A professional networking program for our undergrads. See details here.  Create your own profile here.) The event registration also included KSTUAA Dues which helped raise another $1000 for KSTUAA which will help cover a part of the Homecoming/HOF Induction expenses on September 27, 2025.  

Winning the longest drive was 2016 Fricker Cup Champion Rick Sippola IC '85.   

Jon Stevens IC '87  won the longest putt. 

Partners, Mike White IC '84 and Clay Hunt IC '90 won a consolation prize for having the worst score of the afternoon, 15 over par Net 87.  The team was congratulated for playing fast and not getting bogged down in slow play like previous winners.  

This year's memorable and very successful event was planned by The Fricker Cup Planning & Rules Committee of John Henry IC '85, Dave Bouve IC '86, Brad Flinders IC '86, Brian Harding IC '86, Ed Kessler IC '87, Jeff Meek IC '87, and Frazer Donaldson IC '88 and helped by local host: Brad Storts IC ’89.

A special shout out also goes out to Brother John Schoger IC '87 who not only supervised the split-the-pot hole but also on the day of the event organized a group PowerBall purchase with the estimated jackpot of $1.79 Billion with the caveat of using $20 Million to purchase a new Chapter House! Alas none of the groups tickets came up with the 11, 23, 44, 61, 62, 17pb   

Next year’s event is currently planned for Cleveland with the following 2027 event happening during the 60th Anniversary reunion in Oxford.  Check back on the Fricker Cup page for more details.

The first Fricker Cup was played at Hueston Woods course near Oxford in 2014, eleven years ago.  Ever since, with the exception of 2020 due to Covid two alumni have had their names added to the impressive trophy.  

This years format was a partner scramble, with each partner needing to contribute at least 6 drives. The event started with a lunch at the facility and a boisterous awards ceremony followed the round at the club house.

Like previous Fricker Cups, KSTUAA hosted an alumni gathering Friday night open to all Theta-Upsilon alumni whether they were participating in the golf tournament or not. A large group of over 25 alumni and guests from three decades gathered at The North Market in Dublin.  

After the Fricker Cup, Saturday evening alumni joined the group at several establishments in the Dublin area.  Brother Ed Bennett IC ’85 brought one of his pumpkin rolls to share at the end of the evening. The recipe is based on a John Henry family recipe that Ed learned about while still an undergraduate and has been making annually for family and friends ever since!  It was a sweet finale to a weekend full of camaraderie, competition, and tradition.