BATON ROUGE — Former LSU men’s golf standout Brian Bateman had his best finish on the PGA Tour on Sunday coming in third place at the Honda Classic, which was held at the Country Club of Mirasol in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
Bateman, who starred for the Tigers in the mid-1990’s, posted the day’s best round on Sunday, firing a 4-under 68 to finish the 72-hole tournament at 10-under 278, just two strokes behind champion Todd Hamilton. Davis Love III finished in second at 277.
Bateman, a native of Monroe, La., started the final round in a tie for 14th place before jumping into the top three by posting birdies of four of his final seven holes.
The third place finish earned Bateman a check worth $340,000. It also marked his best finish ever on the tour, bettering his previous high of 11th place at the 2003 HP Classic of New Orleans.
Bateman earned third-team All-America honors for LSU in 1996 and he ranks fourth in school history with 19 top 10 finishes from 1993-96. Bateman, who has spent time on the Nationwide Tour as well, turned pro following his senior season at LSU in 1996.