The sixth-ranked Lee University men’s golf team finished tied for eighth at the Copperhead Championship following three rounds at the Innisbrook Resort-Copperhead Course on Monday and Tuesday. The Flames sat in 10th after completion of the first two rounds.
Lander University was the overall team winner with a three-round score of 868 (+16). No. 12 Saint Leo, No. 2 Barry and No. 5 Lincoln Memorial tied for second with a stroke total of 874 (+22). No. 15 Florida Southern’s tally of 879 (+27) shots put them in fifth, while No.
4 West Florida and No. 1 Arkansas Tech tied for sixth at 880 (+28). Lee tallied a total of 883 (+31) to tie No. 7 Georgia Southwestern. The Flames were 6-over on Tuesday to tie for the second-best third-round score. Lincoln Memorial was 1-under par as a team to climb seven spots, while Lynn equaled Lee’s 6-over performance.
“What a great test of golf this course is,” said Lee head coach John Maupin. “This place demands your best, and at times this week, we were just a little off. However, I love the way we finished off today’s round. We made a great climb back on the final nine today, I wish we could have found just a few more shots to climb in that Top 5.”
Luke Harris of Lincoln Memorial was the medalist with a 3-under par 210. His first-round count was 71 and improved the next two rounds with a 70 in the second round and a 69 in today’s final round.
Connor Pollman shot a 1-over 72 to improve three positions and finish tied for ninth. Beck Burnette jumped 14 spots with an even par on Tuesday to tie for 11th. Pollman posted a total of 217 (72, 73, 72); and Burnette was right behind with a 5-over 218 (72, 75, 71).
Dalton Chuba finished tied for 33rd (223) after round scores of 74, 77 and 72. Trey Melvin registered scores of 78, 73 and 75 on the way to tying for 45th with a total of 226 (+13). Dustin DeMersseman was the final Lee golfer. He tied for 66th with a total score of 230 (+17). He shot 78 in the opening round before posting a 76 in the final two rounds.
“You won’t find a stronger field in DII, this was very similar to an NCAA Regional field, so great experience for our team. We faced some adversity this week with Ollie being out sick, and I was looking forward to seeing some other guys step up for us in his absence. Dalton gave us a very good final round, and I thought Trey was really solid the last 36 holes. I’m incredibly proud of Connor for bouncing back from a nine early in his round to shoot 72, that takes a lot of toughness. Beck didn’t have his best stuff this week, but as you would expect, found a way to push for a top 10 finish in a strong field,” concluded Maupin.
The Flames are scheduled to finish their fall season on October 25-26 at the Southern Tide Intercollegiate. The two-day event will be held at the Atlanta National Golf Club in Milton, Ga.