Jekyll Island, GA – The Piedmont College men’s golf team climbed two places in the last round of play at the Jekyll Island Collegiate earlier today. The Lions finished the tournament 23rd in a field of 30 teams, six spots better than their finish last season.
Freshman Davis Cook (75-82-74–231) and sophomore Jake Forbes (77-82-74–231) led the team in the third round posting a 74. Cook had two birdies on the day on holes six and 15 as the youngster had the second lowest score for PC on the weekend.
Forbes improved his score by 9 strokes from round two with a consistent round three. Forbes scored fourth for the team overall.
Freshman Sam Hill (72-72-75–219), junior Joseph Morris (79-78-75–232), and freshman Aaron VanKempen (92-82-75–249) all posted 75 in round three, a consistent day for the Lions.
Hill posted the lowest score for the team overall and finished in a three-way tie for 15th place with Kelby Scharmann from La Verne and Jonathan Shaw from Claremont-Mudd-Scripps in the tournament field of 150 individuals. Morris finished the tournament with his best round of the weekend shaving three strokes off his round two 78. Morris posted one birdie on both the front nine and back nine.
Vankempen also posted his best score of the weekend in round three, improving his score 17 strokes from the first round. He had two birdies on the 15th and 17th holes to finish his day strong.
The overall tournament winners were fellow USA South member LaGrange College who posted an 863 total score for the weekend, with the second place team ten strokes behind them. Three USA South teams finished in the top six of the tourney field.
In the individual scoring, Cory Howard from LaGrange led Methodist University’s Mason Stutler by one stroke coming into hole 18. Howard was able to birdie the hole, but the Stutler had a surprising eagle to tie the tournament. Stutler and Howard were co-first place medalists.
For their next competition, the men will travel to the Bermuda Collegiate Invitational starting on Monday, March 23 at Port Royal Golf Course in Tucker’s Point, Bermuda.