WEST POINT — The Mississippi State men’s golf team shot a final-round 284 Tuesday to tie for sixth at the Old Waverly Collegiate Championship to complete the regular season.
Freshman Peng Pichaikool shot a final-round of 2-under-par 70 to tie for fourth. It was Pichaikool’s third top-five finish of the season.
“When you host a tournament on your home course you expect to play well. This week, we just didn’t have it,” MSU coach Clay Homan said. “Today the par was about 70 and we just didn’t make any birdies when everyone else was.”
Garrett Johnson, who played as an individual, fired a 70 to tie for 11th.
Jackson Dick and Ross Bell shot final rounds of 71 and 73, respectively, to tie for 24th.
Jacob Ross, who competed as an individual, shot a 71 to tie for 30th.
Taylor Bibbs recorded a 71, Taylor Grant shot a 72 and individual player Austin Rose carded a 72 to tie for 50th.
In his first action of the season, Johnny Newnham shot an 80 and tied for 83rd.
South Florida won the team title, while Lipscomb’s Dawson Armstrong won the individual crown, defeating Kennesaw State’s Chris Guglielmo in a three-hole playoff.
“Old Waverly did a great job of getting the course ready to play after some heavy rains, and we appreciate all they did to make this tournament a success,” Homan said.
Sophomore Braden Thornberry posted consecutive 3-under par 69s to lead No. 24 Ole Miss to a third-place finish.
Thornberry got off to a hot start, scoring 5-under through 10 holes and finished 3-under par 69 at the rain-shortened event. The Olive Branch native birdied every par-5 in the final round to finish tied for best in scoring on par-5s at 6-under. His 12 birdies through 36 holes were the second-most of the field.
Ole Miss owned the front nine, sinking 13 of its 41 birdies and posting only two bogeys. The Rebels tied for the second best score of the day at 11-under par 277. Ole Miss climbed four spots from seventh after the first round to finish with an 8-under 568. Due to weather Monday morning, the Old Waverly Collegiate Championship was shortened to a 36-hole tournament.
“I’m very pleased with the way that we bounced back after a rough finish yesterday,” Ole Miss coach Chris Malloy. “I challenged these guys last night, and they really came out and answered the call. Unfortunately, this was a 36 -hole event because of the weather, and we really needed a few more holes to catch up. This should give us some confidence heading into next week as well.”
Senior Ben Wolcott fired back-to-back birdies on holes No. 17 and 18 to finish even par in the second round and 1-under 143 for the tournament, good for a share of 17th place. Junior Kerry Sweeney posted four birdies through nine holes and added three on the back nine to finish the final round with a score of 5-under par 67. Sophomore Josh Seiple posted three birdies and six pars on the front nine. The Castle Rock, Colorado, native added a birdie on the 190 yard, par-3 No. 17 to finish with a 2-under par 70 in the final round. Seiple finished tied for 24th and Sweeney tied for 34th. Senior Noah West posted a 1-under par 71 for a final score of 4-over 148.
Ole Miss will travel to Nashville, Tennessee, for the Ryman Hospitality Intercollegiate on Monday and Tuesday. That event will be its last tournament before the SEC Championship.
MSU will have almost three weeks before heading to St. Simon’s Island, Georgia, to compete in the Southeastern Conference Championship. Play will begin April 21 at the Sea Island Golf Club.
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