BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — LSU senior-to-be Chris Wells fired a 3-under par 69 in the final round Sunday to finish in sole possession of fourth place at the 2006 Greystone Invitational hosted by Greystone Golf and Country Club.
Wells, who finished the event in a tie for fifth place last year, entered the final round in a tie for sixth place after posting a 5-under 67 and 1-over 73 in the first two rounds at the par 72 course and finished the tournament just three shots out of the lead at 7-under 209.
“I played really well this weekend, especially in the first and third rounds,” Wells said. “The first round was a lot of fun because I got to play with Garrett (Runion). We just talked a lot during the round and it helped me stay relaxed and not think about my score. I carried that over well into the last two rounds and had a good finish.”
Wells actually birdied his first four holes in the first round en route to firing the best score of the day with a 67. He finished with five birdies on the front nine and seven for the round to sit atop the leaderboard after the first day of play.
“I just hit the ball really well tee-to-green all weekend,” Wells said. “The greens at Greystone are actually pretty easy to putt on when you get the ball in position to make a birdie. I did that well, especially in the first round.”
In all, 147 players from 16 states competed in the tournament sponsored by Golfweek and the Alabama Golf Association with Alabama sophomore Mark Harrell capturing the title by one shot over John Eiland. Harrell carded rounds of 69, 68 and 69 to win the tournament with a three-round total of 10-under 206.
Past champions of this growing event include former All-American and current PGA Tour professional Lee Williams of Auburn in 2001 and 2003, as well as Auburn’s Jonathan Dismuke in 2004.
Wells was one of 12 members of the Southeastern Conference competing in the tournament, including five players from both Alabama and Auburn and Runion from LSU. Harrell finished atop the leaderboard, while teammate Gator Todd finished one shot ahead of Wells in third place at 8-under 208.
This was Wells’ second tournament appearance of the summer since completing his junior season at LSU as he finished in a tie for fourth place at the 87th Louisiana Golf Association Amateur Championship at the Country Club of Louisiana on June 11.
Wells will finish his semester of summer school before competing in the U.S. Amateur Qualifier from July 31-August 1 at Dancing Rabbit Golf Club in Choctaw, Miss. He earned a spot in the 105th U.S. Amateur Championship last year by qualifying at the Avalon Landmark Golf Club in Lenoir City, Tenn.
“I have high expectations for myself going into the qualifier,” Wells said. “In a lot of ways it can be more difficult to qualify for the U.S. Amateur itself than qualifying for the match play once you’re there. So, first thing’s first.
“I’ll try to relax and take a bit of a break right now then start practicing hard and getting myself in the right mindset once summer school is out. Like I said, I’ve got high expectations for myself and I’m going in expecting to make a repeat appearance.”
SIXTH ANNUAL GREYSTONE INVITATIONAL ? TOP 10 INDIVIDUALS
1. Mark Harrell 69-68-69 ? 206 -10; 2. John Eiland 71-67-69 ? 207 -9; 3. Gator Todd 70-67-71 ? 208 -8; 4. Chris Wells 67-73-69 ? 209 -7; 5. Kyle Simmons 71-71-68 ? 210 -6; t6. Jeff Golden 73-71-71 ? 215 -1; t6. Scott Philips 67-72-76 ? 215 -1; t6. John Kelly 68-69-78 ? 215 -1; 9. Trey Denton 71-73-72 ? 216 E; 10. Tom Jungkind 73-69-75 ? 217 +1