KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Led by sophomore Brent Struthers’ final round 5-under par 66, the LSU men’s golf team fired a 1-over 285 in the final round Tuesday to finish in seventh place at the Coca-Cola Tournament of Champions at Holston Hills Country Club.
“The guys competed well in their first tournament of the year,” said LSU head coach Chuck Winstead. “It was good to get a tournament under our belts, in particular because we started a junior, three sophomores and a freshman. This should give them some good experience as we move forward this season.
Struthers earned his best finish as a Tiger by tying for 12th with a 1-under 212, while junior All-SEC performer Chris Wells also earned a top-20 finish by tying for 18th with a 1-over 214, including a 3-under 68 in the first round.
“Brent’s play was exceptional today,” Winstead said. “He finished his round with a 29 on his final nine holes and that says a lot about his potential given this was only his seventh collegiate tournament. I’m proud of the other guys as well in how they competed.”
Sophomore Brian Noonan finished in a tie for 36th with a 5-over 218, including a 1-over 72 in the final round, and sophomore Beck Troutman tied for 44th with a 7-over 220. Freshman Jarrod Barsamian shot a 9-over 222 to finish in a tie for 52nd in his first career tournament appearance.
Tournament host Tennessee finished an incredible 32 shots ahead of second-place Alabama with a three-round total of 34-under 818. Tennessee’s Lloyd Campbell defeated fellow Volunteer Philip Pettitt in a playoff to claim medalist honors with a 12-under 201.
The Tigers will break for two weeks before returning to action in the inaugural Shoal Creek Intercollegiate, Sept. 26-27. The tournament will be hosted by UAB at Shoal Creek Country Club in Birmingham, Ala.
COCA-COLA TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS — FINAL ROUND RESULTS
TEAM SCORES (Par 852)
1. Tennessee 268-278-272 — 818 -34; 2. Alabama 279-285-286 — 850 -2; 3. Florida State 286-285-282 — 853 +1; 4. Virginia Tech 283-288-284 — 855 +3; 5. North Florida 293-281-284 — 858 +6; 6. Georgia Southern 281-285-293 — 859 +7; 7. LSU 284-292-285 — 861 +9; 8. Missouri 292-277-294 — 863 +11; 9. Arkansas 287-284-293 — 864 +12; 10. Virginia 289-280-297 — 866 +14; t11. Mississippi State 291-290-291 — 872 +20; t11. College of Charleston 294-283-295 — 872 +20; 13. Ole Miss 293-290-291 — 874 +22; 14. Finland 298-296-283 — 877 +25
TOP FIVE INDIVIDUALS (Par 213)
t1. Lloyd Campbell, Tennessee, 66-67-68 — 201 -12; t1. Philip Pettitt, Tennessee, 66-69-66 — 201 -12; 3. Mark Harrell, Alabama, 67-69-68 — 204 -9; 4. Jonathan Mount, Tennessee, 66-69-70 — 205 -8; 5. Jon David Kennedy, Georgia Southern, 67-70-69 — 206 -7
LSU SCORES
t12. Brent Struthers 71-75-66 — 212 -1
t18. Chris Wells 68-74-72 — 214 +1
t36. Brian Noonan 73-73-72 — 218 +5
t44. Beck Troutman 73-72-75 — 220 +7
t52. Jarrod Barsamian 72-73-77 — 222 +9