STATESBORO, Ga. — Beck Troutman led the LSU men’s golf team to an 11th place team finish in the Schenkel/E-Z-Go Invitational at Forest Heights Country Club by firing an even-par 72 in the final round Sunday to finish in a tie for 19th. The Tigers finished the tournament with a 54-hole score of 37-over par 901.
The Tiger freshman earned the best finish of his young career by recording a 5-over 221 in an event that featured 10 teams ranked in the latest Golfweek Top 25 and many of the elite players in college golf. Troutman also fired the lowest rounds of the weekend for the Tigers with a pair of 72s in the first and final rounds.
Sophomore Chris Wells finished in a tie for 32nd with an 8-over 224, including an even-par 72 in the second round. Senior Heat West finished one shot behind Wells in a tie for 35th with a 9-over 225. West rebounded from a 7-over 79 in the first round to post a pair of 1-over 73s in the second and third rounds.
Senior Jeff Riemann and sophomore Garrett Runion finished in 64th and 69th place, respectively.
The 17th-ranked Duke Blue Devils captured the team title by finishing one shot ahead of No. 12 Auburn with a 4-over 868, including a tournament best 2-under 286 in the final round. South Carolina’s Mark Anderson defeated Jon David Kennedy of Georgia Southern in a two-hole playoff to claim medalist honors. Anderson finished the tournament with a 1-under 215.
The Tigers return to action March 27-29 with a trip to Awandaw, S.C., to compete in the annual Hootie at Bull’s Bay Intercollegiate held at Bull’s Bay Golf Club. LSU has two tournaments remaining before traveling to Sea Island, Ga., to compete in the 2005 SEC Championships.
SCHENKEL/E-Z-GO INVITATIONAL — FINAL ROUND
TEAM SCORES (Par 864)
1. Duke 293-289-286 — 868 +4; 2. Auburn 291-288-290 — 869 +5; t3. Tennessee 290-288-304 — 882 +18; t3. Georgia 304-290-288 — 882 +18; 5. Georgia Southern 288-298-297 — 883 +19; 6. South Carolina 293-289-303 — 885 +21; 7. Minnesota 302-283-301 — 886 +22; 8. Augusta State 299-294-295 — 888 +24; 9. North Carolina 299-296-294 — 889 +25; 10. Florida 296-298-296 — 890 +26; 11. LSU 304-298-299 — 901 +37; 12. Clemson 298-301-304 — 903 +39; 13. Ohio State 311-301-292 — 904 +40; 14. USC 300-299-310 — 909 +45; 15. N.C. State 307-303-307 — 917 +53
TOP 5 INDIVIDUALS (Par 216)
t1. Mark Anderson, South Carolina, 72-71-72 — 215 -1*; t1. Jon David Kennedy, Georgia Southern, 69-73-73 — 215 -1; t3. Patton Kizzire, Auburn, 72-70-74 — 216 E; t3. Ross McGowan, Tennessee, 73-69-74 — 216 E; t3. Stuart Moore, Auburn, 70-76-70 — 216 E
* – denotes player won in a playoff
LSU SCORES
t19. Beck Troutman 72-77-72 — 221 +5
t32. Chris Wells 76-72-76 — 224 +8
t35. Heath West 79-73-73 — 225 +9
64. Jeff Riemann 77-79-78 — 234 +18
69. Garrett Runion 80-76-83 — 239 +23