Samford finishes seventh at Pinetree Intercollegiate
KENNESAW, Ga. – The Samford men’s golf team came in seventh in the Pinetree Intercollegiate, hosted by Kennesaw State University, Monday and Tuesday.
The tournament was held at the Pinetree Country Club (par-72, 7,108 yards), and was Samford’s third of the fall season.
Despite playing with three freshmen, Samford shot a three-day score of 911 (307-295-309). Memphis won the tournament, finishing with a total score of 856 (286-284-286).
Individually for Samford, freshman Aaron Walker led the Bulldogs, finishing in a tie for 14th with a three-round score of 221 (76-71-74). Senior Zach Hughes tied for 20th with a final score of 224 (75-72-77).
Junior Ashton Nix tied for 50th, carding a tournament total of 236 (76-78-82), while freshman Jackson Seawell tied for 52nd with a three-round score of 237 (80-74-83). Another freshman, Crawford Flach, finished in a tie for 57th with a final score of 240 (83-81-76).
Lars van Meijel of Memphis took individual medalist honors with a score of 211 (73-65-73). Fredrik Nilehn of Kennesaw State came in second, carding a three-round score of 212 (72-69-71).
Samford will return to action, Oct. 26-27, when the Bulldogs travel to Gulf Shores, Ala., to compete in the Fall Beach Classic, hosted by Arkansas State University.
Mercer finishes 10th at Pinetree Intercollegiate
KENNESAW, Ga. – The Mercer University men's golf team wrapped up play at the Pinetree Intercollegiate on Tuesday afternoon at the Pinetree Country Club, finishing 10th at the two-day event.
Brennan Bogdanovich, playing as an individual, matched Jeffrey Heinicka for the Bears’ best round on Tuesday, carding a 2-over-par 74 on the strength of two birdies. The freshman, competing in his first collegiate tournament, moved up 11 spots on the leaderboard Tuesday afternoon, finishing the event in 35th overall with a three-round tally of 229.
Mercer finished the tournament with a 25-over 313 to push its total tally to 924 on the week. Memphis took the team title, while Kennesaw State and Lipscomb rounded out the top three.
Mercer finished the tournament with 25 birdies, including a team-high seven from Timmy Hanzelko. Jerry Ren had six for the Bears, while Bogdanovich and Sean Smothers added five apiece.
The Bears were at their best on par-5 holes, shooting a combined 1-under with a 4.98 stroke average.
Ren led Mercer for second time this season, finishing a team-best 9-over thanks in large part to his second-round even-par score of 72.
The Bears wrap up the fall schedule on Oct. 25-26 at the Bridgestone Golf Collegiate at Grandover National in Greensboro, N.C.
Western Carolina finishes 13th at Phoenix Invitational
BURLINGTON, N.C. – Western Carolina senior Tyler Lail advanced 12 spots in Tuesday’s final round, carding a 1-under-par 70 to come home in a four-way tie for 20th overall to lead the team. The Catamounts finished the third round with their tournament-low round of 302, collectively placing 13th in the event.
Lail finished the Phoenix Invitational with a score of 6-over-par 219. Behind Lail, junior Evan Smith jumped one spot over the final day of competition, firing a 5-over-par 76 to finish tied for 54th with a three-round score of 229, matching his career-best shot during his freshman season.
WCU freshman Lawson King finished with a final-round 79, carding a three-round total of 234 to finish 74th overall, while sophomore Jackson Bishop was a stroke in arrears in a tie for 75th at 235. Bishop opened Tuesday strong with eight pars and one bogey on the back nine, finishing 6-over on the front for a 7-over par 78.
Rounding out WCU’s scoring five was freshman Mark David Johnson, who posted his best round on Tuesday, shooting 7-over-par 78 for a two-day total of 245 to place tied for 88th.
Playing as an individual, freshman Alex Lee slipped 15 positions on Tuesday, placing in a three-way tie for 47th overall at 227, his best three-round tournament score. Lee shot 7-over 78 over the final 18 holes.
Also competing as an individual, freshman Bradley Durand finished tied for 84th with a score of 239. The Oak Ridge, Tenn., native turned at 4-over on the day but struggled through the front nine.
With all five golfers inside the individual top 10, 47th-ranked East Carolina claimed the tournament championship by 23 strokes over second-place Charleston Southern, 833-856.
VCU’s Adam Ball claimed individual medalist honors, edging East Carolina’s Jacob Hicks, who led after the first day, by a stroke, 204-205.
Western Carolina now turns its attention to its home tournament, the Hummingbird Intercollegiate, which will be hosted Nov. 1-2 at the Country Club of Sapphire Valley.