Bowen Wentz records 6th lowest round in school history at the St. Leo Invitational
Thanks to help from Wentz’s stellar second round, the Eagles shot two-under in their second 18, landing just outside the top ten.
DADE CITY, Fla. – Thanks to help from Wentz's stellar second round, the Eagles shot two-under in their second 18, landing just outside the top ten.
Dylan Frein was soaring in round one. The stellar freshman teed off on hole ten and quickly carded his first birdie of the day on the par five 11th. The next quickly followed for the Florida native at the par five 13th. Coming in at 34 (-2) wasn't sufficient for Frein. He birdied back-to-back holes to kick off the back nine. Frein found trouble at the 6th and 7th holes, going double, bogey before a birdie-birdie finish on holes eight and nine. Frein's 69 (-3) led the Eagles in round one and put him just inside the top 10.
Bowen Wentz was the next best in round one for C-N. Wentz began his day two under through five holes with birdies on the par five 11th and the 563-yard par five 13th. The freshman came in even par. When he made the turn, an unfortunate double bogey at the first would be nixed by two birdies on the 2nd and 3rd holes. Wentz finished his round with four pars to record a 73 (+1) and was tied for 46th.
Brady Wentz saw an early bogey on his first hole of the day but leveled the scales on hole 11 with a birdie on the 559-yard par five. The junior just one other bogey on the 15th to come in at 37 (+1). Another plus went on the scorecard when Wentz bogeyed the first hole, but responded again with a three on the par four 3rd and rolled to another bird on the par four 5th to get him back to even. Two more bogeys in his last four holes gave Wentz an opening round 74 (+2). The junior was tied for 54th following the first 18.
Owen Larson was the picture of consistency. The sophomore recorded eight straight pars before he bogeyed the par-four 1st. He followed that up with four more pars before two more bogeys at the 6th and 10th. Larson was T63rd with his opening round 75 (+3).
Theo Baker was one under through his first six holes thanks to a birdie at the 10th, but two bogeys at the 14th and 15th would carry the junior to a 37 (+1) on the back nine. He began his front nine with a bogey at the 1st, and made five pars in his last six holes to finish three over (75). He was tied with Owen Larson at 63rd.
The most challenging hole for the Eagles in round one was the 6th. C-N played hole six five over. It was the second hardest hole of the day for the entire field, playing about half a stroke above par.
The Eagles were tied for 9th after round one and were beating four top 50 teams in the field. C-N was tied with #22 Barry and was just five stokes back of #2 Lee.
In round two, Bowen Wentz continued his strong play. The freshman was +1 through four holes before he hit a phenomenal drive on the par five 13th and an even better hybrid shot to four feet. He sank the putt for an eagle. This is the first eagle of the Georgia native's collegiate career. Wentz went on to birdie the 15th as well to come in with a 34 (-2), his lowest nine yet. The freshman's solid back nine seemed to give him the confidence he needed; Wentz caught fire with five birdies in his last seven holes.
His six under 66 is the lowest round by an Eagle this year and tied for the lowest round of the day for the sixth lowest round in school history. Only four players in C-N history have shot 65, and the lowest round in school history was a 63 from Jonathan Nielsen on October 25, 2021. Wentz is -5 on the weekend thus far and is ranked 11th in the field.
Baker had an up-and-down round until he made the turn. The junior made birdies on the 11th, 15th, and 17th holes but matched each of those birdies with bogeys to come in at even par. After the turn, Baker birdied the 2nd, 3rd, and 7th holes to record a one-under 71. With a two-round total of +2, Baker stands in 53rd place.
Larson made his first birdie of the day three holes into round two. Larson carded a four on the par five 15th. Following a bogey at the 15th, Larson made six straight pars before a bogey at the fourth. He finished with six more pars for C-N's third-best score of round two: 73 (+1). At +4 in total, Larson is 70th.
Frein found some trouble in round two. The freshman started his second round with two bogeys, but circled the 13th. Frein made one more birdie on the 8th hole to shoot 76 (+4) in round two. Frein is +1 through 36 and slots in 44th in the field.
Brady Wentz was the final finisher for C-N. The junior birdied his second and 5th hole of round two, but recorded eight bogeys throughout round. His 78 (+6) sets him at +8 overall and 83rd in the standings.
C-N is in a tie for 11th as a team with Trevecca Nazarene. They are currently ahead of #23 Rollins, #47 Tampa, and #46 Eckerd. They are three strokes back of the top 10 and 20 strokes out of first place. #37 Lynn and #4 Florida Southern lead the tournament at -21. There are three players tied for the individual lead at -9.
Carson-Newman men's golf returns to action tomorrow at You can follow along for updates on social media @cneagles or check cneagles.com for full coverage. Live scoring is also available on the Clippd website.
