KSU’s men’s golf team finished in a tie for seventh place at the Autotrader. com Collegiate Classic on Tuesday, with Pedar Lunde Hermansson finishing at a career best sixth place.
The tournament kicked off its second consecutive year of competition on Monday morning. The par 72 course spans 6679 yards at the Berkeley Hills Country Club in Duluth, Ga.
“The golf course is a classic, traditional design that requires proper position from tee to green.” heach coach Jay Moseley said regarding the course.
The Owls knew entering the tournament that the competition was going to be tough. Of the 15 teams and 88 golfers entering the tournament, three of the programs were listed in the top-52, featured in the latest Golfweek magazine. Eight teams were ranked in the top 100, while nine of the golfers who took to the course Monday morning were believed to be part of the top 100 in the country.
Joining the Owls were tournament host and No. 87 Georgia State, No. 47 Chattanooga, No. 89 Georgia Southern, No. 5 Georgia, No. 81 Mercer, No. 52 South Carolina, and No. 86 Winthrop.
Hermansson got things started for the Owls, as the senior led a lineup that consisted of sophomores Jimmy Beck and Austin Vick, junior Sam Curtis and fellow senior Ben Greene. Beck was coming off a strong outing at the team’s last tournament, finishing 2nd overall at the Rees Jones Intercollegiate.
It was Hermansson however who got things rolling for the Owls this time. The senior finished the day in fourth place. His even-par during the first two rounds of play had him sitting in fourth place, just two strokes behind second, and four behind tournament leader Dykes Harbin of South Carolina.
“I was happy with Peder’s performance,” Moseley said. “His play carried us.”
Beck followed Hermansson, as the senior’s leadership pushed the sophomore, allowing him to finish the day tied for 22nd, carding a six-over-par through the first two rounds of play. Next was Vick, who carded a 10-over-par and finished at 152, followed immediately by Greene who placed one behind at 153 with an 11-over-par.
Tuesday brought much of the same success for Hermansson. He finished the tournament at 2-over par, scoring 215 in the 54-hole event. The senior placed sixth, a big improvement from his previous career finish, a tie for 31st, set earlier this season at the Carpet Capital Collegiate Championship. Hermansson finished ahead of seven players ranked in the top 100 and two in the top 20.
Beck finished 19th, shooting an eight-over-par, while Ben Greene finished at 35th with 13 over. Vick closed out the scoring with a 14-over-par and a 40th finish. The Owls however shot a season low 37- over- par, and finished tied for seventh in the 16-team field.
“We had a disappointing finish as we didn’t play to our capability this week,” Moseley said. “We got beat by teams we know we are capable of beating. We have to get better and that’s the bottom line. We are going to work harder to improve and that will be our mindset going forward.”
The men will return to action on Monday, Oct. 22 as they host the 12-team Inaugural Pinetree Intercollegiate on their home turf, the Pinetree Country Club.
“We are excited to defend our home course,” Moseley said. “This will be a short turn around for us, but it is a nice homecoming competing close to home. The guys are excited to play close to campus, and we hope that we can get a lot or support to turnout.”
To keep up with the latest information from the team, you can follow them on Twitter at @KSUOwlNation at @ KSUOwlsMensGolf, or by liking Kennesaw State Owls on Facebook.
