Duke, No. 20 in the latest Golfstat rankings, turned the Princeton Invitational, played on a
winter weekend in early April at Springdale Golf Club, into a runaway with a
record-breaking second round Sunday.
The 15-under 269 turned in by the Blue Devils was an 18-hole
team record as the ACC representative seemed to thrive as cold and clear conditions
replaced Saturday’s miserable weather that featured a cold rain with an
occasional snowflake mixed in. Combined with its opening-round 274, Duke put up
a 25-under 543 total and finished a whopping 34 shots ahead of runnerup
Harvard.
Saturday’s awful conditions forced tournament officials to
shorten the event from 54 holes to 36 holes, but there would be no catching the
Dookies on this weekend.
The Crimson emerged from a spirited battle in the mere-mortal division as Harvard added a 4-over 288 Sunday to an opening-round 289 to
finish at 9-over 577, a shot ahead of a trio that included two of its Ivy
League rivals, host Princeton (296-286) and Yale (289-289), and one of Duke’s
ACC rivals, Georgia Tech (294-284).
Duke’s Alex Smalley, a freshman from Wake Forest, N.C., fired
the day’s best round, a sparkling 5-under 66 over the 6,424-yard, par-71
Springdale layout, to take individual honors at 8-under 134. He finished a shot
ahead of teammates Max Greyserman (68-67), a junior from Short Hills, N.J. and
a product of nearby Peddie School, and Jake Shuman (65-70), a sophomore from
Needham, Mass., both of whom were at 7-under 135.
Yale’s Li Wang, a junior from Sammamish, Wash., fired a
4-under 67, which, combined with an opening-round 71, earned him a fourth-place
finish at 4-under 138 and led the Bulldogs to their share of third. Harvard’s
runnerup finish was paced by Rohan Ramnath, a senior from Weston, Fla. who
added a 70 to his opening round of 2-under 69 to finish fifth in the individual
chase at 3-under 139.
Princeton’s solid 2-over team total was led by Marc Hedrick,
a sophomore from Encinitas, Calif. who fired a 3-under 68 and finished alone in
sixth place at 2-under 140. Eric Mitchell, a sophomore from Winston-Salem,
N.C., matched par with a 71 Sunday to finish tied for 16th.
Another sophomore, Michael Davis, the Aronimink Golf Club
member and former Malvern Prep standout, fell back with a 75 after opening with
a 71 in Saturday’s terrible weather, and finished 28th at 4-over 146.
Davis’ old Inter-Ac League rival, Georgetown sophomore Cole
Berman, the former Haverford School standout, had a tough weekend. Berman, who
defeated Davis in the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s BMW Amateur
Championship last summer at Llanerch Country Club, slipped to a 79 Sunday after
opening with a 75 and finished tied for 63rd at 154.
Georgetown finished eighth in the team standings with rounds
of 292 and 291 for a 583 total. The Hoyas were led by Sam Madsden, a sophomore
from Madison, Wis. who finished tied for seventh with rounds of 71 and 70 for a
1-under 141 total.
Penn, the reigning Ivy League champion, finished 10th
with a pair of 297 rounds and a 594 total. The Quakers were led by Carter Thompson,
a sophomore from Tallahassee, Fla. who had rounds of 74 and 71 to finish tied
for 20th at 145.
Saint Joseph’s finished 11th with rounds of 301
and 295 and a 596 total. The Hawks were led by T.J. Summers, the senior who
starred scholastically at Central Bucks West.
Summers finished tied for 16th with rounds of 73 and 71 for a
2-over 144 total.
Temple had a bit of a disappointing weekend, finishing 12th
with rounds of 301 and 299 for a 600 total. But the Owls got a strong showing
from Trey Wren, a freshman from Suffolk, Va. who finished tied for 20th
with rounds of 72 and 73 for a 145 total.
Sam Soeth, the Temple freshman who was a standout at Marple
Newtown, competed as an individual and
matched par Sunday with a 71 to finish tied for 29th at 147. That’s
the kind of round that may have Temple coach Brian Quinn considering including
Soeth among the team counters.
Senior Brandon Matthews, one of the best players in the
history of the Temple program, never got it going for the Owls at Springdale, posting
rounds of 77 and 76 to finish tied for 59th at 153. Matthews won the
Philadelphia Open for the second time in three years last summer and reached
the second stage of the PGA Tour Qualifying process last fall.
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