Eagle Golf Concludes Competition at Gator Invitational Georgia Southern finishes in 10th place; Monte shoots career-low 69 in final round
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Freshman Joe Monte shot a team-low 69 in the final round to pace the Georgia Southern golf team, Sunday (Feb. 10) at the SunTrust Gator Invitational on the par-70, 6,701-yard Mark Bostick Golf Course.
Monte (Chantilly, Va.), who finished tied for 28th place, shot an individual team- and career-low 5-over 215 in the 54-hole tournament. His 69 in the final round was also a career-low, which helped the team to a 21-over 861 performance. The Eagles maintained their previous day’s position and finished the tournament in 10th place, defeating No. 20 Ole Miss, North Florida, South Florida and No. 50 Georgia State.
The host of the 14-team tournament, No. 18 Florida repeated its team victory from last year, shooting a 20-under 820, 12 strokes better than runner-up Florida State.
Duke’s Michael Schachner and UAB’s Zach Sucher were named co-medalists of the tournament, both shooting a 7-under 203.
Just behind GSU’s Joe Monte was freshman Logan Blondell (Lakeland, Fla.) who shot a 6-over 216 and tied for 34th place. Junior Drew Lethem (Camdenton, Mo.) followed tied for 38th place with a 7-over 217. Not far behind was senior Chris Smith (Alpharetta, Ga.) with an 8-over 218, good for a tie for 44th place, and junior Ryan LeFevre (Boca Raton,
Fla.) with a 9-over 219 to tie for 51st place.
“(Monte) got off to a pretty good start and kept it going all day,” said head coach Larry Mays. “He kept his focus all day, today. The two freshman (Monte, Blondell) are getting a lot of experience which will definitely help us down the road. Looking ahead, we’ve got a month to get better in preparation for the next tournament at Coastal Carolina.”
The Eagles will have a month to prepare for their next competition - the General Jim Hackler Invitational, Mar. 9-10, at the TPC of Myrtle Beach in South Carolina.
First Day Results for Eagle Golf at Gator Invitational Georgia Southern sits in 10th place after day’s first two rounds in Gainesville, Fla.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. ? The Georgia Southern golf team completed the first day of competition sitting in 10th place, Saturday (Feb. 9), at the SunTrust Gator Invitational at the par-70, 6,701-yard Mark Bostick Golf Course on the campus of the University of Florida.
The Eagles finished the first day’s 36 holes shooting a 9-over 569, bettering Duke, North Florida, Georgia State and South Florida.
Tournament-host Florida holds a decided lead over the rest of the 14-team field, shooting a one-day total 18-under 542, which is 12 strokes better than runner-up, Florida State.
Junior Drew Lethem paces the team shooting an even-par 140 and sits tied for 21st place. Lethem shot a 70 in both the first and second rounds.
Junior Ryan LeFevre shot a 2-over 142, tying for 31st place, and is followed by teammates Logan Blondell (+3), Chris Smith (+5) and Joe Monte (+6).
LeFevre and Blondell each shot a 70, apiece, in the second round.
“We started out well in both rounds,” said head coach Larry Mays. “But we couldn’t quite seal the deal. With the kind of competition that’s here, we’ve got to play consistent.”
“If we can go out tomorrow and get a good round, then we can move up a few spots,” said Mays. “We’re playing some good competition out there.
We’ve got to play consistent throughout.”
The Eagles will play the third and final round, Sunday (Feb. 10) with tee-times beginning at 8 a.m.
For end-of-day results and live stats, fans can go online to www.Golfstat.com. End-of-day recap and results will be posted at www.GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com.