Central Florida Edges Vanderbilt to Win the Hummingbird Intercollegiate; Western Carolina Finishes Fall with Fifth-Place Showing
Senior Andres Cuenca incurred a two-stroke penalty which dropped him to 12th to lead WCU
Sapphire, N.C. ? Despite the heroics of Vanderbilt’s Hudson Johnson on the tournament’s final three holes, the University of Central Florida claimed the 2008 Hummingbird Intercollegiate team championship by a stroke (557-to-558) over the Commodores Tuesday evening at the par 71, 6,767-yard Country Club of Sapphire Valley.
The Golden Knights’ two-stroke advantage after Monday’s opening round held as Vanderbilt carded a tournament-low team round of 275 over the final 18 holes, establishing a single-round record. Vandy’s round of 275 on Tuesday was three swings lower than the previous record of 278 shot by Western Carolina a season ago.
Akron (578) finished third in the event, with Southern Conference foes Elon (584) and WCU (587) rounding out the top five. Other SoCon finishers included Wofford tied for ninth, Furman tied for 11th and Appalachian State in 14th.
For WCU, the 587 turned in over the past two days ranks tied for 10th in the school’s 36-hole record books.
Johnson, who entered the day tied for second after an opening round 68 on Monday, shot eagle with a hole-in-one on the par 3, 187-yard 16th before shooting par on the 17th. He birdied the 460-yard par 5, 18th to card 65 and win the individual medalist honors with a two-day total of 133. He edged out UCF’s David Johnson (134) by a stroke, with the duo going toe-to-toe in the day’s final pairing.
Brad Schneider of Central Florida finished third with rounds of 68 and 71 to conclude the event at three-under, 139, while teammate Simon Ward placed in a two-way tie for fourth with Vanderbilt’s Tyler Matthews at two-under, 140, to round out the top five finishers.
Hudson Johnson’s 65 was the lowest individual collegiate round ever carded at the Country Club of Sapphire Valley, one better than the 66 carded by WCU’s Andres Cuenca and Dustin Furnari in last season’s event. Also, Hudson’s 133 and David Johnson’s 134 both broke the year-old 36-hole tournament record of 135 held by Cuenca.
Defending tournament champion, Cuenca, led the Catamounts with a two-day total of two-over, 144. The senior from Fuengirola, Spain, incurred a two-stroke penalty during Tuesday’s round which dropped him from the top 10 finishing order into a 12-way tie for 12th place.
Junior transfer Drew Miller chiseled two strokes off his opening round 74 to shoot a one-over, 72, on Tuesday, moving into a tie for 25th. Classmate Ricky Stout was consistent with consecutive rounds of 74 to shoot 148 and finished tied for 34th while also leading the tourney with 27 par scores.
Rounding out WCU’s order were senior Dustin Furnari, who dropped three strokes off his opening round to shoot 149, tied for 40th, and freshman Kyle Wilson (t-80th, 162), who was making just his second collegiate tournament appearance.
The Catamounts’ low round of the final day came from sophomore Caleb Marsh. Playing as an individual, the Strawberry Plains, Tenn., native finished his round with a three-under 68 to finish the tournament at 145, tied for 19th. He was also one of three individuals to post two Eagles during the 36-hole event.
Freshman Martin Summer, who shot a career-low 70 on Monday, finished tied for 34th at 148, while a trio of juniors rounded out WCU’s individuals in Benjy Davey (t-49th, 152), Cody Walker (t-63rd, 153) and transfer Rylan Lanham (t-73rd, 156) in his first tournament for Western.
The event concludes the fall season for the Catamounts which saw three different golfers lead the team in scoring through the opening five events. Western Carolina will open its six-event spring season on March 2-3 at the Argonaut Invitational, hosted by West Florida at the Pensacola Country Club in Pensacola, Fla. The schedule will culminate with the SoCon Championships April 19-21 at the Country Club of South Carolina in Florence.
1 UCF 281 276 - 557 -11
2 Vanderbilt Univ. 283 275 - 558 -10
3 Akron, U. of 293 285 - 578 +10
4 Elon University 296 288 - 584 +16
5 Western Carolina U. 294 293 - 587 +19
6 Gardner-Webb U. 299 289 - 588 +20
Francis Marion U. 299 289 - 588 +20
8 Radford University 295 296 - 591 +23
9 Wofford College 298 296 - 594 +26
Samford University 302 292 - 594 +26
11 Winthrop University 309 291 - 600 +32
Furman University 306 294 - 600 +32
13 High Point U. 299 302 - 601 +33
14 Appalachian State U. 306 303 - 609 +41
SAMFORD MEN’S GOLF: ?DOGS RALLY FOR NINTH-PLACE FINISH AT 2008 HUMMINGBIRD INTERCOLLEGIATE
--- Samford’s Andrew Villarreal shoots a team-best score of 67 on Tuesday ---
SAPPHIRE, N.C. --- The Samford men’s golf team fired a second-round score of 292 on Tuesday to improve two spots at the 2008 Hummingbird Intercollegiate. The Bulldogs finished the prestigious tournament as the ninth-place team in the annual competition held at the Country Club of Sapphire Valley.
Samford improved its team score by 10 strokes Tuesday as it jumped from 11th place to ninth place on the final day of competition. The Bulldogs’ significant improvement was due to a pair of stellar performances from seniors Andrew Villarreal and Ian Cutting.
Villarreal, Samford’s native of Decatur, Ala., fired a team-best round of 67 on Tuesday and finished with a 36-hole score of 146. Cutting also rallied for a below-par performance in the second round and notched a 70 to finish the tournament at 148. Villarreal led the Bulldogs with a 25th-place finish in the individual standings.
Samford’s Martin Bunt also improved Tuesday and carded a second-round score of 73. The Bulldogs’ sophomore from Pensacola, Fla., finished third on the team with a 36-hole total of 149.
Rounding out Samford’s top-five players this week were Bobby Baird (70-82?152) and Tyler Baird (78-86?164).
UCF held off a resurgent Vanderbilt team to earn a one-stroke victory in the team competition. UCF turned in a second-round score of 276 for a two-day total of 557, while Vanderbilt shot 275 for a final team score of 558. Rounding out the top five were Akron (578), Elon (584) and Western Carolina (587).
Vanderbilt’s Hudson Johnson won the individual title with a two-day total of 133. He fired a tournament-best score of 65 on Tuesday to rally for a one-stroke victory over UCF’s David Johnson.
The 2008 Hummingbird Intercollegiate was Samford’s final competition of the fall season. The Bulldogs will next be in action March 2-3 in the West Florida Intercollegiate Tournament held in Pensacola, Fla.
Terriers finish men's golf fall campaign
CASHIERS, N.C. -- The Wofford men's golf team earned a ninth-place tying result out of 14 schools to conclude its fall season at The Hummingbird Intercollegiate Tuesday on the par 71, 6,767-yard Sapphire Valley Country Club in Cashiers, N.C. The finish was the fourth straight for the Terriers in the top 10 during the fall campaign.
Senior Drew Perry paced Wofford with a 74-72--146 (+5) to tie for 25th. His 1-over par during the second round was matched by classmate Neil O'Briain, who was competing in his first tournament of the season. O'Briain carded a 76-72--148 (+7) to tie for 34th.
Junior Kirk Whitehead was the next Terrier in the clubhouse with a 40th-place tying 73-76--149 (+8).
Freshman Zach Capps was the final Wofford counter, as he posted a 75-77--152 (+10) to tie for 58th.
Rounding out the Terrier contigent was senior John Gault with a 71st-place result of 79-76--155 (+13).
UCF captured the team title, edging Vanderbilt by one stroke. They were the only two schools under par. However, the Commodores' Hudson Johnson topped the Knights' David Johnson by one shot on the individual leaderboard.
Wofford will continue its season in the spring with the first tournament, the Wexford Plantation Intercollegiate, slated for Feb. 23-24 at the Wexford Plantation Golf Club in Hilton Head, S.C.
Wofford Individuals:
T25--Drew Perry, 74-72--146 (+5)
T34--Neil O'Briain, 76-72--148 (+7)
T40--Kirk Whitehead, 73-76--149 (+8)
T58--Zach Capps, 75-77--152 (+10)
T71--John Gault, 79-76--155 (+13)
Top-10 Individuals:
1--Hudson Johnson (Vanderbilt), 68-65--133 (-9)
2--David Johnson (UCF), 67-67--134 (-8)
3--Brad Schneider (UCF), 68-71--139 (-3)
T4--Simon Ward (UCF), 73-67--140 (-2)
T4--Tyler Matthews (Vanderbilt), 72-68--140 (-2)
T6--Kelly Manders (Winthrop), 73-69--142 (E)
T6--Curtis Brotherton (High Point), 72-70--142 (E)
T6--Ryan Haselden (Vanderbilt), 70-72--142 (E)
T6--Jonathan Bowman (Furman)*, 73-69--142 (E)
T6--James Field (Furman)*, 73-69--142 (E)
Team Standings:
1--UCF, 281-276--557 (-11)
2--Vanderbilt, 283-275--558 (-10)
3--Akron, 293-285--578 (+10)
4--Elon, 296-288--584 (+16)
5--Western Carolina, 293-293--587 (+19)
T6--Gardner-Webb, 299-289--588 (+20)
T6--Francis Marion, 299-289--588 (+20)
8--Radford, 295-296--591 (+23)
T9--Wofford, 298-296--594 (+26)
T9--Samford, 302-292--594 (+26)
T11--Winthrop, 309-291--600 (+32)
T11--Furman, 306-294--600 (+32)
13--High Point, 299-302--601 (+33)
14--Appalachian State, 306-303--609 (+41)
Furman's Bowden, Field Fire Two-Under 69 At Hummingbird Intercollegiate
Sapphire, N.C. -- Furman’s Jonathan Bowden and James Field each carded a final round 69 on Tuesday to grab a share of sixth place at the Hummingbird Intercollegiate hosted by Western Carolina at the par-71 Country Club of Sapphire Valley.
Furman notched a 10-over 294 on Tuesday to take a share 11th place along with the Winthrop Eagles. Anthony Aloi (76-73=149) paced the Paladin squad at seven-over 149 to finish 40th. Sophomore Austin Reeves (78-72=150) used a final round 72 to claim 49th.
Bowden (73-69=142) and Field (73-69=142), playing as individuals, finished at even-par for the tournament while junior Daniel Bowden (73-72=145) took a share of 19th with a 72 on Tuesday.
UCF (281-276=557) edged Vanderbilt (283-275=558) by one stroke to take the team title. Akron, Elon and Western Carolina rounded out the top five. The Commodores’ Hudson Johnson (68-65=133) registered a six-under 65 on Tuesday to take individual medalist honors just one stroke ahead of first round leader David Johnson (67-67=134) of UCF.
T11 Furman 306 294 600
T40 Anthony Aloi 76 73 149
T49 Austin Reeves 78 72 150
T52 Garland Ferrell 74 77 151
T63 J.B. Murphy 78 75 153
T69 Matt Hayes 80 74 154
T6 Jonathan Bowden 73 69 142
T6 James Field 73 69 142
T19 Daniel Bowden 73 72 145
T25 Matthew Broome 71 75 146