The Virginia men’s golf team won the Lewis Chitengwa Memorial, a tournament hosted here in Charlottesville at the Birdwood Golf Course from Monday to Tuesday. Coming off a seventh place finish at the Mason Rudolph Championship, the Cavaliers shot a 15-under-837 to beat No. 20 Tennessee by a single stroke.
Filling out the starting lineup for the A-Team were freshman Deven Patel, sophomores George Duangmanee, Grayson Wotnosky and Chris Fosdick and junior Pietro Bovari. The Cavaliers also played a B-Team comprised of sophomore Jaron Leasure, junior Liam Powderly, seniors Sam Jung and Jack Montague and fifth-year Jimmie Massie, that ultimately took home ninth place in the tournament.
The Cavaliers had seven players place in the top 25, four of which finished in the top 10 — Duangmanee tied for third, Bovari and Fosdick tied for sixth, and Jung tied for ninth.
The first day of competition saw a round and a half of play. The Cavaliers finished the first round in fourth after shooting 5-under-279. Duangmanee led the way with a performance good for a tie for first, as he carded a 4-under-67. Bovari and Fosdick both ended the opening round at 1-under-70, and Patel and Wotnosky both turned in a 1-over-72.
The B-Team finished the first round in 13th place with a score of 5-over-289. Jung posted a 2-under-69 while Montague and Massie both shot 1-over-72 and Powderly and Leasure shot 5-over-76.
The first day was scheduled to include two rounds of play, however, a lack of sun complicated matters. The second round was suspended due to darkness, and play resumed early the following morning.
The second round saw four out of five A-Team players finish at or under par — Duangmanee at 3-under-68, Patel at 2-under-69, Fosdick at 1-under-70 and Bovari exactly at par 71. This impressive round was made possible by exceptional performances on par 3s and par 4s. The Cavaliers sat at the top of the leaderboard for the lowest average strokes on those holes. Virginia’s Fosdick was the single best player on par 4s, requiring an average of only 3.78 shots.
The third round took place immediately after the conclusion of the remainder of the second. The Cavaliers had three out of five players finish at or under par, all of whom shot at or under for all three rounds. Duangmanee finished the third round at par 71, Bovari at 3-under-68, and Fosdick at 2-under-69. Rounding out the A-Team was Patel at 1-over-72 and Wotnosky at 6-over-77. As a whole, the Cavaliers rounded out the final round with a score of 4-under-284.
Despite placing fourth after the conclusion of the first rounds, Virginia finished the tournament at the top of the leaderboard. Their 15-under-837 bested Tennessee by one stroke and North Florida by four.
The B-Team finished the tournament in ninth place at 6-over. However, Jung, Massie and Montague all placed individually within the top 25.
This was the final tournament of the regular season for the Cavaliers. The postseason begins April 22, as they travel to Panama City Beach, Fla. to compete in the ACC Championships at the Sharks Tooth Golf Club.
Read More
Virginia adds six promising players in second week of the transfer period
By Peter Kriebel | YesterdayVirginia has reinforced several positions throughout its roster, and more additions may be on the way.
Reflecting on a year of incredible achievement by women’s sports at Virginia
By Eleanor Buchanan , Caroline Wulff and Cierra Lyles | 2 days agoThree Cavalier Daily staff writers share their thoughts on 2024 highlights.
Late run pushes men’s basketball past American
By Thomas Baxter | 3 days agoVirginia squeezed out a win to end non-conference play.
