Sander Paces Eagles in John Hayt Collegiate Invitational
3/2/2010 10:15:00 PM | Men's Golf
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Guiding the Eagles in the three-day John Hayt Collegiate Invitational, redshirt-freshman Florian Sander earned his first 'Top 5' collegiate finish with a 217 tournament total placing him tied for fifth. Two opening rounds of under-par paired with Sander's final 18 granted the Eagle a 1-over 217 for the tournament, which was challenged at the Sawgrass Country Club, a par-72, 6,895-yard course.
Finishing four strokes behind Sander (Bregenz, Austria), senior Spence Fulford (Rocky Mount, N.C.) showed a strong performance to finish tied for 13th. Fulford led the team on the final day and combined three rounds for a 221 tournament total.
As a team, Georgia Southern shot a 306 on the final day to place tenth with a 902 tournament total, four strokes out of a fifth place finish. Host No. 27 North Florida claimed the title matching its second round 294 on the final frame for a three-day total 876. The Ospreys bested No. 33 LSU (888) in second place by 12 strokes, while No. 30 Duke (889) slipped into third place on the final day. No. 23 Alabama claimed fourth with an 895, while No. 25 Tennessee and Tulsa tied for fifth, each with 898s.
Joe Byun of North Florida took individualist honors shooting a tournament-best 212 with two rounds in the red. Three players owned second with 216s, while Sander was one of five to claim part of fifth-place at 217.
“I'm proud of the team for hanging in there all weekend when we faced tough conditions every day,” said head coach Larry Mays. “We had a chance to beat some strong teams but came up a little short with our final round. I'm proud of Florian [Sander] and Spence [Fulford] for leading the team all weekend. We have some work to do when we get home before next week in order to get four solid rounds to come together.”
With weather conditions plaguing the final round of play, Sander was able to erase a bogey on hole four with a birdie on eight. The Eagle made the turn at 1-over after a bogey on nine and two bogeys on the back nine completed the 3-over 75 final round for Sander – who used rounds of 71-71-75 to place him in the top five in a tie at 1-over.
Fulford led the team in the final round, carding a 2-over 74 using three birdies intermixed with five bogeys. The Rocky Mount, N.C., native expunged a 2-over front nine tally launching consecutive birdies on the opening two holes of the back nine. But two bogeys on the final four holes left the Eagle at 2-over for the day and with a 221 tournament total, which placed the senior in a 13th-place tie.
Matt Deal (Statesboro, Ga.) climbed the player leaderboard into a 54th-place tie posting a final round 77. A birdie jumpstarted the senior on the opening hole, but that would be the highlight of the round as the Eagle finished the tournament at 232.
Trailing Deal by three strokes, fellow classmate Ryan Zabroske (Alpharetta, Ga.) carded a final round 80 for a three-day 235. Zabroske finished the tournament tied for 69th after slicing off two strokes with birdies on the final two holes, while junior Joe Monte (Chantilly, Va.) concluded the event tied for 76th. Monte owned three birdies on the day, including two consecutive to close out the front nine. The junior finished the tournament with a 239 after a final round 84.
Competing as an individual, Logan Blondell (Lakeland, Fla.) tied for 81st in the tournament with a final round 81 and tournament total 242.
The Eagles face a quick turnaround before getting back on the course at the two-day Cleveland Golf Palmetto Intercollegiate, March 8-9 in Aiken, S.C.
Finishing four strokes behind Sander (Bregenz, Austria), senior Spence Fulford (Rocky Mount, N.C.) showed a strong performance to finish tied for 13th. Fulford led the team on the final day and combined three rounds for a 221 tournament total.
As a team, Georgia Southern shot a 306 on the final day to place tenth with a 902 tournament total, four strokes out of a fifth place finish. Host No. 27 North Florida claimed the title matching its second round 294 on the final frame for a three-day total 876. The Ospreys bested No. 33 LSU (888) in second place by 12 strokes, while No. 30 Duke (889) slipped into third place on the final day. No. 23 Alabama claimed fourth with an 895, while No. 25 Tennessee and Tulsa tied for fifth, each with 898s.
Joe Byun of North Florida took individualist honors shooting a tournament-best 212 with two rounds in the red. Three players owned second with 216s, while Sander was one of five to claim part of fifth-place at 217.
“I'm proud of the team for hanging in there all weekend when we faced tough conditions every day,” said head coach Larry Mays. “We had a chance to beat some strong teams but came up a little short with our final round. I'm proud of Florian [Sander] and Spence [Fulford] for leading the team all weekend. We have some work to do when we get home before next week in order to get four solid rounds to come together.”
With weather conditions plaguing the final round of play, Sander was able to erase a bogey on hole four with a birdie on eight. The Eagle made the turn at 1-over after a bogey on nine and two bogeys on the back nine completed the 3-over 75 final round for Sander – who used rounds of 71-71-75 to place him in the top five in a tie at 1-over.
Fulford led the team in the final round, carding a 2-over 74 using three birdies intermixed with five bogeys. The Rocky Mount, N.C., native expunged a 2-over front nine tally launching consecutive birdies on the opening two holes of the back nine. But two bogeys on the final four holes left the Eagle at 2-over for the day and with a 221 tournament total, which placed the senior in a 13th-place tie.
Matt Deal (Statesboro, Ga.) climbed the player leaderboard into a 54th-place tie posting a final round 77. A birdie jumpstarted the senior on the opening hole, but that would be the highlight of the round as the Eagle finished the tournament at 232.
Trailing Deal by three strokes, fellow classmate Ryan Zabroske (Alpharetta, Ga.) carded a final round 80 for a three-day 235. Zabroske finished the tournament tied for 69th after slicing off two strokes with birdies on the final two holes, while junior Joe Monte (Chantilly, Va.) concluded the event tied for 76th. Monte owned three birdies on the day, including two consecutive to close out the front nine. The junior finished the tournament with a 239 after a final round 84.
Competing as an individual, Logan Blondell (Lakeland, Fla.) tied for 81st in the tournament with a final round 81 and tournament total 242.
The Eagles face a quick turnaround before getting back on the course at the two-day Cleveland Golf Palmetto Intercollegiate, March 8-9 in Aiken, S.C.
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