The Piedmont men’s golf team held tough in difficult conditions as the first two rounds of the Tartan Invitational were completed on Monday at Laurel Valley Golf Club in Ligonier, Pennsylvania.
The Lions saw different players step up across the two rounds, led by a 1-under 71 in the first round from Josh Hebrink. Then, in the second round, it was senior Eric Penland and freshman Tom Yao came through when needed in Round Two.
Overall, the Lions were consistent across the two rounds, firing an opening 306 followed by a 308 in the second round.
Hebrink showed why he is the defending NCAA champion as the senior from Elk River, Minnesota, went into red numbers thanks to a team-high seven birdies in the first round.
Josh Hebrink – Scorecard (10.9.23)
He was supported by sophomore Adam Rogers, who made a pair of birdies on his way to a 4-over 76 while Lucas delivered the third round in the 70’s for Piedmont, also making two birdies on his way to a 79.
Penland made nothing worse than a bogey in his first round and posted the final counting score for the Lions with an 80.
He was then able to carry over the momentum and stepped in with a tied for team-best 75 in the second round.
Yao made an even bigger improvement in his second round, firing a 3-over 75 that included a team-high three birdies in the second round.
Lucas was the lone Lion to fire both rounds in the 70’s, as he improved by one shot to post a 78 in the second round.
Hebrink was the only Lion to not make a birdie in the second round, as the senior fell back to T-16 after having a share of the lead in the first round, thanks to an 8-over 80 while Rogers’ 82 did not count for the team total.
Methodist sits atop the team leaderboard at 13-over, five strokes ahead of second-place Emory.
Lynchburg’s Eddie Coffren V is the only player under par after two rounds, sitting at -2 for the event.
The tournament is set to conclude with the final round, beginning tomorrow at 8:15 am with a shotgun start.
LIONS ON THE LEADERBOARD:
7 Piedmont University 306 308 614
T16 Josh Hebrink (1) 71 80 151
T29 Eric Penland (5) 80 75 155
T41 Cameron Lucas (4) 79 78 157
T47 Adam Rogers (2) 76 82 158
T47 Tom Yao (3) 83 75 158
