AU men’s golf finishes 10th at Pinehurst, with Steyn finishing in top 20

By Chris Rickerson | Sports editor 

The Augusta University men’s golf team finished 10th at the Wake Forest Invitational on Tuesday, March 9, in Pinehurst, N.C. 

The Jaguars had five golfers compete on the par-70, 7,125-yard Pinehurst No. 2 course. The U.S. Open has been played there three times and will again be played there in 2024.

AU freshman Gareth Steyn led the Jaguars, finishing tied for 17th and shooting 11-over-par for the tournament. He 76, 73 and 72.

“I felt like I played well overall,” said Steyn. “Pinehurst is Pinehurst. It's a super tough course, arguably one of the most difficult in the USA and by far the most difficult course I’ve ever played. These certainly aren't the lowest scores I've ever shot, but under the pressure and circumstances I am very pleased with my performance.”

Steyn also spoke on where he could improve on his game for future tournaments.

“I need to improve my putting stats,” he said. “That's my top priority. Our new assistant coach, Broc Everett, has helped me tremendously with my putting the last couple weeks and I'm already seeing some big improvements; I just need to keep doing what I'm doing! I also need to keep finetuning my short game, as I believe your short game can never be too good. Lastly, my mental game can also be improved too, the more mentally tough I can become, the easier it will be keep finishing consistently inside the top 20 and even pushing into the top 10 and 15.”

Everett is a graduate of Augusta University and won the individual NCAA Division I National Championship in 2018. 

Junior Alex van Wyk finished tied for 31st, shooting 17-over-par for the tournament. He shot 73 and 74, but slumped to an 80 in the final round. 

AU junior Viktor Lindgren finished tied for 39th, shooting 22-over-par for the tournament. Sophomores Jack Vajda and Brock Hoover tied for 53rd, both shooting 25-over-par for the tournament.

Clemson University ran away with first place in the tournament, shooting 18-over-par as a team. The next closest team was Duke, who shot 34-over-par. Wake Forest was third.

Senior Zack Gordon and graduate student Colby Patton finished tied for first individually, winning the tournament at 2-over-par for the Tigers. 

The Jaguars’ next event will be at the Linger Longer Invitational on March 20-22 in Eatonton.

 Contact Chris Rickerson at crickerson@augusta.edu.