BATH, Mich. – In a field that featured nine nationally ranked teams, and two other non-ranked schools from the Big Ten, the Illinois State men's golf team played its best round of the tournament on Wednesday, tying for 10th overall in the deep field.
Georgia, ranked #34 in the country, won the tournament with a three-round 822, out-distancing #3 Illinois (831), #22 Oregon (838), and #10 Florida. Fifteenth-ranked Texas (843) edged out 27th-ranked Kansas State (845) for the fifth and final spot to advance to the National Championship. Tournament host Michigan State (851) placed seventh with #39 Liberty (855) and #50 Little Rock (864) finished just ahead of ISU's 869, the same score as 46th-ranked San Diego. Wisconsin (873) and Purdue Fort Wayne (900) rounded out the 13 schools in the tournament.
Parker Wisdom rebounded from a rough round on Tuesday to tie his career-low with a two-under 69, ending the tournament second on the team overall with a 220, and tied for 54th. He was never at par on the day, as he opened play with a birdie on his first hole of the day (the course's 10th hole) and after a par added his second of four birdies on the day on the par-three 12th hole. He closed his front nine with three pars, two bogeys and a birdie to make the turn at two under par and was stellar over his back nine with eight pars and a birdie to tie his career best that was set in the opening round of the tournament.
Alex McCulla finished the day one under par, as he had a steady round that included three birdies, two bogeys, and 13 pars. McCulla opened and closed his front nine with bogeys, while his front-nine birdie came at the midway point of the opening nine holes on the 14th hole. His back nine was steady with seven pars and birdies on the third and eighth holes to close the day with the one-under 70 and tying for 62nd overall in the tournament field.
Felix van Dijk, Illinois State's overall leader for the tournament, ended play on the final day with a two-over 74, putting him in a tie of 35th overall individually with a two-over 215. He started strong with birdies on each of his first two holes of the day and followed with six consecutive pars. He stumbled on the 16th and 17th holes, recording double-bogeys on each, before seemingly righting the ship with a birdie to close his front nine, and another to open the back nine. His final eight holes consisted of five pars and three bogeys to end the tournament three shots over par.
Valentin Peugnet rebounded from a rocky front nine – a side that saw him with four pars, four bogeys, and a birdie – to card a pair of birdies and seven pars on his back nine to close with a one-over-par 72 on the day. That 72 put him at nine strokes over par for the three rounds and tied for 60th in the strong tournament field.
Freshman Pietro Pontiggia had three birdies – on the 13th, 15th, and fourth holes – along with four over-par scores on his final round of the regional, ending nine strokes over par and tied for 60th.
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Athletic Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
