JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The LSU men’s golf team shot a final-round 10-over-par 298 on Tuesday to finish in seventh place at the Mercedes-Benz Collegiate Championship at the Sawgrass Country Club in Jacksonville.
The Tigers finished the tournament with a 28-over 892 total, 20 strokes behind tournament champion Florida, which won the Mercedes-Benz title for the fifth-straight season. LSU edged the Gators by one stroke last week in Gainesville to win the Gator Invitational.
Eighth-ranked Tennessee caught fire in the final round on Tuesday, shooting an 11-under 277 to finish two strokes behind Florida in second place. Tennessee’s third-round score was the best of the entire tournament. Host North Florida finished third, Wake Forest placed fourth and North Carolina State rounded out the top five at 26-over par.
Senior Nathan Goulding once again led LSU by shooting a 2-over 218 to finish in a 10th-place tie at 2-over par for the tournament. Goulding finished tied for second last week at the Gator. He now has five Top-10 finishes in his career and three this season.
Goulding was named the Southeastern Conference Golfer of the Week on Feb. 13 for his performance at the Gator Invitational. True freshman Heath West finished in a tie for 26th place at 8-over par. West now has three top-10 finishes this season, just one behind Goulding.
Junior Garrett Prather had one of his best performances of the season by shooting a 5-over 221 to tie for 18th place. Prather shot a 1-over 73 in the final round Tuesday. It is the first Top-20 finish for Prather this season. Freshman Tucker Ervin, participating in his first tournament since the Country Club of Louisiana Intercollegiate in October, finished 48th with a 13-over 229. John Humphries tied for 60th place at 18-over par.
“We were in position after the first two rounds on Monday to have a shot to win, but we did not shoot the low numbers that it takes to win,” said LSU head coach Greg Jones. “This was a tough tournament and we held our won, we will be ready for our tournament at home in a few weeks.”
The Tigers will host the second-annual LSU Spring Invitational March 1-3 at the University Club in Baton Rouge.
FINAL TEAM SCORES
1. Florida 298-287-287 — 872 +8; 2. Tennessee 307-290-277 — 874 +10; 3. North Florida 303-288-293 — 884 +20; 4. Wake Forest 299-298-290 — 887 +23; 5. North Carolina State 296-306-288 — 890 +26; 6. Augusta State 303-295-293 — 891 +27; 7. LSU 305-289-298 — 892 +28; 8. Texas 306-294-294 — 894 +30; 9. North Carolina 310-293-293 — 896 +32; 10. Duke 312-299-291 — 902 +38; 11. Florida State 307-307-289 — 903 +39; 12. Vanderbilt 314-302-288 — 904 +40; 13. Georgia State 309-300-299 — 908 +44; 14. South Carolina 314-302-295 — 911 +47; 15. Northwestern 311-301-303 — 915 +51.
TOP 10 INDIVIDUALS
1. Camilo Villegas, Florida 71-66-73 — 210 -6; 2. (tie) Brandt Snedeker, Vanderbilt 74-69-69 — 212 and Garth Mulroy, N.C. State 71-71-70 — 212 -4; 4. Scott Jamieson, Augusta St. 71-71-72 — 214 -2; 5. Jason Hartwick, Texas 77-64-74 — 215 -1; 6. (tie) Camilo Benedetti, Florida 75-73-68 — 216 and Ian Parnaby, Tennessee 76-71-69-216 E; 8. (tie) Jimmy White, Tennessee 75-71-71 217 and John Limanti, North Florida 74-69-74 — 217 +1; 10 (tie) Dustin Bray, North Carolina 79-68-71 — 218, Brent Wanner, Wake Forest 75-71-72 — 218, Nathan Goulding LSU 73-69-76 — 218, Ramon Bescansa, North Carolina 74-74-70 — 218 and Ari Savolainen, Florida 76-70-72 — 218 +2 .
LSU SCORES
t10. Nathan Goulding 73-69-76 — 218 +2
t18. Garrett Prather 79-69-73 — 221 +5
t26. Heath West 74-76-74 — 224 +8
t48. Tucker Ervin 79-75-75 — 229 +13
t60. John Humphries 82-76-76 — 234 +18