After last week’s brutal outing at The Calusa Cup, No. 11 Virginia needed to capitalize on hosting its last tournament of the regular season. The Cavaliers did just that, finishing second, shooting eight-under par and, along with only No. 10 Florida State, placing all its golfers in the top 40. The Cavaliers achieved that last feat despite playing nine golfers — five representing the team, four competing as individuals — in the tournament.
Florida State won the tournament at 13-under par, beating Virginia by five strokes. The Seminoles dominated for the first two rounds of the tournament, and while a 14-over-par third round tightened things up, their cushion proved large enough to preserve the lead, even as the Cavaliers had the best third-round score — by five strokes — of the entire field, shooting 3-over.
Five Cavaliers finished in the top 20. While there was a decent gap between the top performers and the others, most everyone on the team performed well. Junior Ben James and sophomore Josh Duangmanee led the way.
In the first round, James was paired with the highest-ranked amateur golfer in the world — Florida State junior Luke Clanton. Any pressure that may have accompanied the grouping seemed lost on James, who tied for 33rd in the PGA Tour’s Valero Texas Open last week, his highest finish in seven PGA Tour starts.
James shot a two-under 69, a three-under 68 and a two-over 73. He finished second overall, tied with Duangmanee. Duangmanee began similarly, with a two-under 69, but declined a bit with a two-over 73 in the second round before a round-best three-under 68 in the third. Both golfers finished three-under for the tournament.
Junior Bryan Lee and senior Deven Patel tied for 19th at two-over, along with freshman Maxi Puregger, who competed as an individual. Lee began with an even-par 71, followed it up with a strong two-under 69 and ended on a four-over 75. Patel was remarkably consistent, shooting a one-over 72, a one-under 70 and a two-over 74. Puregger started strong with a two-under 69, slowed with a three-over 74 and finished with a one-over 72.
Seniors Paul Chang and Matt Monastero finished at 23rd and 25th, respectively. Chang shot a three-over 74 to start out but improved with a two-under 69 and a two-over 73 for a three-over par finish. Monastero, who competed independently, had a fantastic three-under 68 to start, followed by a strong even-par 71 to place him in a tie for 10th overall. But he collapsed at the end with a seven-over 78 in the third, dropping him to four-over for the tournament.
Sophomore Sam O’Hara and senior Benny Haggin both competed independently and finished tied for 32nd. Similarly to Monastero, the pair started strong but finished poorly. O’Hara began with a one-under 70 and a three-under 68 to tie for sixth after two rounds but ended with a rough nine-over 80. Haggin shot a one-over 72 and a three-under 68 in the first two rounds, but a seven-over 78 dropped him down from a tie for 16th place after the third round. Both shot five-over par.
This was a much-needed get-right tournament for the Cavaliers, and they delivered on the opportunity. The strong finish gives them some momentum heading into next week’s ACC Championships, which begin April 24 at The Club at Olde Stone in Bowling Green, Ky.
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