OPELIKA, Ala. – Mathias Lorentzen and Yannick Schütz both placed among the top 20 individually to lead the University of South Alabama men's golf team at the Tiger Invitational presented by Jason Dufner.
The former recorded a 1-under-par 215 three-day total to tie for 11th place while the latter ended up in a tie for 17th two strokes behind. Rasmus Karlsson fired a 3-under-par 69 in the opening round, while Joran Plunkett and Dawson Atkinson contributed a 71 and 72, respectively, over the final 18 holes.
No. 15 Auburn, the tournament host, shot an 11-under-par team score over the last 18 holes to win the event with a 10-under-par 854 total. The Jags were three shots from finishing in the top five with an 875 group score over three days after shooting par or better as a team in each of the last two rounds. Jackson Wedgeworth of North Alabama recorded a 9-under-par 207 54-hole total to pick up medalist honors by one shot over Auburn's C.J. Easley.
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
Event (host): Tiger Invitational presented by Jason Dufner (Auburn)
Dates: 3/8-10 (Sunday-Tuesday)
Course: Grand National Lake Course (par 72, 7,289 yds)
Live scoring: http://results.golfstat.com/public/leaderboards/gsnav.cfm?pg=participants&tid=18613
TEAM SCORES
1) Auburn 281-296-277—854 (-10); 2) Auburn 'B' 284-291-281—856; 3) ULM 280-294-291—865; 4) Kentucky 291-296-280—867; 5) Charlotte 286-293-283—872; T6) South Alabama 300-288-287—875; T6) Western Kentucky 291-295-289—875; 8) Toledo 292-295-289—876; T9) Louisiana Tech 287-305-286—878; T9) North Alabama 292-290-296—878; 11) Florida Atlantic 296-294-289—879; T12) Chattanooga 297-298-286—881; T12) Arkansas State 292-302-287—881; 14) Georgia State 296-299-290—885; 15) James Madison 299-292-295—886; 16) Southern Mississippi 307-295-290—892; 17) Austin Peay 306-309-293—908; 18) Kennesaw State 314-300-296—910; 19) Mercer 312-306-298—916; 20) Morehead State 318-314-306—938.
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
1) Javckson Wedgeworth, UNA 68-68-71—207 (-9); 2) C.J. Easley, AU 68-71-69—208; T3) Mac Murphy, LT 70-72-69—211; T3) Alex Vogelsong, AU 72-71-68—211; 5) Otto Van Buynder, ULM 69-72-71—212; T6) Marc Boucher, Char 72-72-69—213; T6) Jovan Rebula, AU 71-72-70—213; T8) Julien Sale, ASU 70-76-68—214; T8) Alex Goff, UK 74-74-66—214; T8) Will Porter, Chat 70-74-70—214.
SOUTH ALABAMA SCORES
T11) Mathias Lorentzen 75-67-73—215 (-1); T17) Yannick Schütz 78-68-71—217; T37) Rasmus Karlsson 69-79-73—221; T49) Jordan Plunkett 78-74-71—223; -) Dawson Atkinson DQ-80-72—152.
TEE SHOTS
-The event field included 20 teams and 102 competitors.
-It's the fourth time in the last five outings that the Jaguars have finished sixth or better in the team standings.
-The Jags were the only team to shoot par or better on the second day of play after posting a 288 group total in the round.
-It was the third time in the last four tournaments that South has posted a team score of par or lower in multiple rounds.
-The Jaguars ended the competition second in the field in scoring on par-three holes and were among the top five on par fours as well.
-Lorentzen's 2-under-par total on par fours was second-best in the field individually as he led the squad with 12 birdies in the event.
-The junior has now placed in the top 25 in the individual standings in four of the Jaguars' last five events.
-Schütz — who shared the lead in the tournament after playing the course's par-three holes at 1 under — is now tied for the team lead this year with eight scores at or below par.
-Karlsson's 69 in the opening round matched his low 18-hole score of the year first recorded on the first day at the season-opening Lone Star Invitational on Sept. 16.
-Plunkett has now shot par or below in five of the last eight rounds, while he ended the event one birdie shy of matching Lorentzen for the team lead in the category.
-Atkinson's 72 on the final day of play was his eighth score of par or better on the season, with seven of those coming in the last 12 rounds.
THEY SAID IT
Head coach Ben Hannan
On the message to the team after the first round that helped turn things around: "We had a good range session, did some speed drills and talked individually about trust, the process and taking ownership. This game is all about perseverance and managing expectations. As simple as it sounds, if you can just play the shot in front of you and put your efforts and energy there things normally workout."
On the play of the team's upperclassmen: "Raz's 69 in the first round was big and kept us from being completely out of it. Mathias and Yannick followed that on day two by shooting 67 and 68, which was really impressive with the conditions; it was such a difficult day with strong winds and jammed pins. They both hit the ball very well the last 36 holes, took advantage of the par fives and made some putts."
On the importance of the performance of all five individuals in final round moving forward: "This week we had multiple rounds under par, but more importantly we got some big erasers with scores in the 60s on a demanding golf course. All five guys were in the game on day three, which is a positive sign. There are a few things we need to clean up moving forward, but there were a lot of positives to take from this week as we enter the last half of the season."
Up next: The Jags will be back in action on Friday, March 20 when the Linger Longer Invitational gets underway in Eatonton, Ga.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/WeAreSouth_JAGS. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
Join the Birdie Club — the men's golf specific support club of the Jaguar Athletic Fund. All donations to the Birdie Club go directly to support the South Alabama men's golf program. For more information on how you can join visit: jaguarathleticfund.com/birdieclub.
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