Men's Golf | 4/4/2021 5:19:00 PM
HOWEY-IN-THE-HILLS, Fla. Methodist never strayed from the top of the leaderboard over the three days of the Golfweek Division III Men's Spring Invitational, closing out the final round on Sunday with an 11-shot victory over runner-up Huntingdon College.
The Monarchs (299-285-296—880, +16) were tied for first after the opening round but used a 3-under par 285 on Saturday to wrest control of the tournament. On Sunday they battled a Huntingdon squad that closed within four strokes through the middle of the round but picked up the pace and left the Hawks behind to capture the tournament title.
Methodist placed all five of its players within the top 25, including
Andre Chi (Tie-3rd place),
Cooper Hrabak (5th) and
Henry Angier (T-8th) who finished in the top 10.
JUST THE FACTS
Event: Golfweek Division III Men's Spring Invitational
Location: Mission Inn Resort & Club, Howey-in-the-Hills, Florida
Course: El Campeón (6,755 yards, Par 72)
Top teams: 1 – Methodist (299-285-296—880, +16), 2 – Huntingdon (305-290-296—891, +27), 3 – Emory University (304-305-290—899, +35)
Top individuals: 1 – Jason Li, CMU (69-75-70—214, -2), 2 – Logan Ryan, Emory (74-75-68—217, +1), T-3 –
Andre Chi, Methodist (73-70-75—218, +2), T-3 – Kenny Park, Oglethorpe University (74-73-71—218, +2)
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Chi had entered the day with a share of the lead before dropping back following a 2-over front nine. The junior found himself 4-over after the 11th before righting the ship. He birdied the 13th, gave the stroke back on the 14th, then closed the round par, par, par, and birdie on the 18th.
- Hrabak (74-74-71—219, +3) was eighth at the beginning of the round but began to inch upward right from the start after a birdie on the par-5 1st. A misstep on the third was fixed with a birdie on the 4th, only to give that stroke back on the eighth. The freshman found his form with a par on the 9th followed by a birdie on No. 10 to get to 1 under for the round. A birdie on the 17th put him at 2 under on Sunday and ahead of Chi on the tournament leaderboard, but a bogey on No. 18 combined with Chi's birdie flipped their places on the final leaderboard.
- Starting Sunday with Chi tied for first, senior Henry Angier (74-69-79—222, +6) saw his plans to chase a victory derailed after going out at 6 over and adding bogeys on Nos. 10 and 11 on Sunday. Angier rebounded beginning with the 12th, knocking in six straight par putts before ending with a birdie to close his tournament tied for eighth.
- Bouncing back after a tough opening round on Friday, senior Zane Brownrigg (78-72-74—224, +8) added an even-par round on Saturday to move up 12 spots on the leaderboard then held his ground on Sunday – buoyed by a 3-under back nine – to finish alone in 13th place.
- Cameron Cappuzzo (79-74-76—229, +13) had a solid round on Sunday to finish tied for 21st, going out in +3 and coming back in +1. His back nine included a birdie on No. 13 and six pars.
GOLFWEEK NOTES
- As it was following Saturday's round, Methodist closed the tournament with the best averages on the par 3s (3.13), 4s (4.24) and par 5s (4.80).
- The Monarch also collected 157 pars and 47 birdies, both of which led the field.
UP NEXT
- Methodist will close out the regular-season portion of its schedule with the Wynlakes Invitational on April 12-13. Hosted by Huntingdon College, the two-day event will be contested at the Wynlakes Golf & Country Club in Montgomery, Alabama.
- The Wynlakes event will serve as a final tune-up for the third-ranked Monarchs, who will compete in the USA South Athletic Conference Men's Golf Championship at Benvenue Country Club in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, on April 22-24.
