Eagles prep for final Fall test at McDonough Cup
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – As the Carson-Newman men’s golf team concludes the fall portion of its schedule this week at the McDonough Cup, the progress that the Eagles have made in their first four events is evident.
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – As the Carson-Newman men's golf team concludes the fall portion of its schedule this week at the McDonough Cup, the progress that the Eagles have made in their first four events is evident.
Three top-five finishes, including two second-place trophies, the first individual win since March 2013 and another second-place individual finish highlight the Eagles' season.
Andrew Hall (Knoxville, Tenn.), one of Carson-Newman's top golfers, made his debut with the Eagles this season after transferring from Walters State. He opened the season with a second-place finish at the Smokey Mountain Intercollegiate and has continued his steady play
"With Andrew, we knew we had a terrific player coming in so that was good recruiting coup for us and he has been what we expected and he will continue to play well and be a leader on our team," golf coach Randy Wylie said.
The two other top golfers returned from last season's South Atlantic Tournament championship team in sophomore Dalton Reese (Warrenton, Ga.) and junior Nicklaus Kennedy (London, Ontario, Canada).
Kennedy won the team's first individual tournament in two seasons with his four-hole playoff win at the North Georgia Fall Invitational.
"Nick Kennedy and Dalton Reese have done a nice job," Wylie said. "Dalton has really raised the level of his game and Nick has taken it to a completely different level with a win and the confidence that comes with a victory like that against a great field."
Joining Hall, Reese and Kennedy at this week's tournament are junior Nathan Hodge (Jefferson City, Tenn.) and freshman Steven Hill (Knoxville, Tenn.).
Hodge is making his first appearance in the team competition since the Kiawah Island Invitational. The junior finished tied for 33rd two weeks ago at the State Farm Intercollegiate.
Hill is one of the two freshmen that have played in a team competition in 2014. The Knoxville-native made his debut with the team at the North Georgia Fall Invite and has stayed with the team. Hill shot a season-low 71 in the first round at the State Farm Intercollegiate in the Eagles' most recent tournament.
"Steven has a shot a couple of really good rounds, showed he can play at a really high level, consistency needs to improve. Ben (Kennard) is kind of in the same boat. He hasn't had as many low rounds as he needs to shoot but he is a really hard worker, really smart player, so we just have to keep developing those guys."
This weekend's tournament, the McDonough Cup, features 10 ranked teams and three more receiving votes in the Golf Coaches' Association of America's latest poll. The field isn't the only tough aspect of the tournament.
Second-ranked Nova Southeastern and fourth-ranked Lynn are the two top-ranked teams in the tournament. No. 7 West Florida and No. 10 Columbus State are the two other top-10 teams competing.
The McDonough Cup will be played at the Rio Pinar Country Club in Orlando, Fla. The 7,001-yard Rio Pinar has hosted PGA and LPGA tournaments.
"Well, we are in the real deep end of the pool this week. The best teams of the country, a lot of them will be there," Wylie said. "Obviously, we would like to win the tournament. Every time you go compete as a competitor, that's your goal. You know a top-five finish would be really good though, that would be a solid finish in this field.
We just want to play well across the board, have five guys all contributing as a team and I think we can have a top-five finish and if you are in that top-five, ultimately, that puts you in a position where you maybe have a chance to win the whole thing."
The 54-hole McDonough Cup tees off with 36 holes Monday and finishes with 18 holes Tuesday in Orlando.
-CN-
