AU men’s golf posts top-six finish at Palmetto tournament

By Leeroy Francis |Staff writerThe Augusta Jaguars men’s golf team ended up in a tie for sixth place with University of Memphis in the Cleveland Golf Palmetto Intercollegiate Tournament at Palmetto Golf Club in Aiken, S.C., on March 6.In the 18-team tournament, Augusta had a team score of 859 or 19 over par as a team. East Carolina University narrowly beat the Jaguars by two strokes at 857 for fifth place.On the par-70, 6,617-yard course at Palmetto Golf Club, the Jaguars shot an even-par 280 in the opening round and played even better on day two of the tournament with a 274 to put them in position to challenge first-place Virginia entering the final round of the tournament.AU was 6-under-par and three strokes behind the Cavaliers to start the final day, but a final round 305 in tough conditions slipped the Jags out of contention.University of Virginia won the tournament at even par, while Georgia Southern placed second at 9 over par. Tournament host USC Aiken placed third at 15 over par, University of Alabama- Birmingham placed fourth at 16 over par and East Carolina rounded out the top-5 shooting 17 over par.AU senior Broc Everett had a 1-shot lead over the 90-man field after round one, shooting a round one low score of 66. He had five birdies and one bogey in the round. That 4-under-par is his lowest round of the year so far. He followed that strong round with a round-two score of 67 with one eagle, four birdies and three bogeys. With a one-shot lead going into the final round in tough conditions, he shot a 77 and finished in a tie for seventh place at even par for the tourney.Augusta freshman Alex Shead, from nearby Appling, tied for 17th at 5 over par. Shead had shot an opening round 69 to put himself in a good position after day one. He then followed that with an even-par 70 and in the final round in tough conditions shot a 76 to eventually place in a tie with four others at 215.The men play at the Linger Longer Invitational, March 18-20, at Great Waters Reynolds Plantation in Eatonton, Ga. The tournament is co-hosted by Kennesaw State and Mercer University. Contact Leeroy Francis at lfrancis@augusta.edu