PLACIDA, Fla. - Using a one-under final round from Joe Hodgson, the Illinois State men's golf team closed play at the Coral Creek Club Invitational – an event with 12 top-100 programs in the 16-team field.
"We didn't take advantage of opportunities on the front end this week, but I am hopeful we learned some things," said Illinois State head men's golf coach Ray Kralis. "While this is who we are now, it is important to manage the expectations coming out of the winter. I am confident we will learn some hard lessons from this and be better because of it."
The Redbirds carded a final-round 296 to finish with a three-round 884, to place the squad 15th in the deep field. Florida Gulf Coast – the host school at the event – took home the team title with a three-round 838, while #38 North Florida (850), South Alabama (851), #47 Liberty (852), and UCF (863) rounded out the top five schools.
Behind his final-round 70, Hodgson was the top Redbird finisher overall with a four-over 217 for the tournament, placing him in a tie for 33rd. Andrew O'Brien tied for 47th with a three-round 220, with Alex McCulla (226, t-68th), Valentin Peugnet (229, t-75th), and Felix van Dijk (230, t-77th) rounded out the five golfers for the Redbirds.
Hodgson, who opened his round on the par-four 14th hole, started play with back-to-back bogeys. Despite the slow start, he came back with a birdie and after a par and a bogey, he remained at two shots over par. His final 13 holes he was stellar, with three birdies and 10 pars, dropping his score to a team-tournament-low 70 for the 18 holes.
McCulla had the team's second-best round on the day with a two-over 73, as he had two birdies, a dozen pars, and four bogeys for his final round.
O'Brien shot a four-over 75, as he had three birdies and 10 pars over the 18 holes, along with five over-par holes for his final-round 75.
Peugnet and van Dijk shot final rounds of 78 and 79, respectively, as Peugnet's round saw three birdies and seven pars and van Dijk's 10 pars.
The Redbirds return to action in two weeks when the team travels south to the Louisiana Classics Invitational, hosted by the University of Louisiana on March 14 and 15.
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