Last week, the Georgia men’s golf team was victorious at the Linger Longer Invitational, held at The Landing Course at Reynolds Lake Oconee. The team shot a combined score of 30-under par, with five bulldogs finishing in the top-ten.
They competed against top-25 competitors such as No. 17 South Carolina and No. 18 Alabama. The Bulldogs won by two strokes.
After experiencing 24 mph winds on the second round, the team dropped to second place, posting a score of seven-over par.
“Playing in the conditions yesterday felt sort of impossible,” junior Carter Loflin said. “There’s not really any way to fight the wind, you just have to deal with it.”
The team then shot a combined 20-under par the next day under ideal weather conditions.
Freshman Matt Moloney and Senior Buck Brumlow each took the windy round as an opportunity to improve. Moloney went from shooting four-over par on round two, to four-under par on round three, an eight stroke difference.
“I made a little tweak in my swing on the range today and I needed it,” Moloney said.
Brumlow went from shooting three-over par on round two, to six-under par on round three, an impressive nine stroke difference.
The senior headed into the tournament with a little extra luck too, as he had a hole in one during the practice round on number 11.
“It was pretty cool. I haven’t made one in three years,” Brumlow said.
“Up and down, up and down is the best way to describe it. I had some really good stretches and some really bad stretches, but ultimately, pretty decent playing,” Moloney said, describing the tournament.
This was Moloney’s first top 10 finish of his career.
Sophomore Grayson Wood had the best finish on the team.
“Coming out two weeks ago in Vegas I almost got last so it’s nice to be able to bounce back,” Wood said.
In the prior tournament, Wood shot a total of 18-over par, tying for 78th place. Last week, Wood finished tied for second place, shooting a total of nine-under par.This was Wood’s second top five finish of the season.
The bermudagrass greens remained tough throughout the tournament. Brumlow, Moloney, and freshman James Earle each said that putting was the weakest part of their game.
Earle proved to be adaptive, as he got a nine on hole two of the first round, then had three birdies, an eagle and another birdie later in the round.
“I just laughed and walked to the next tee,” Earle said.
