CABO SAN LUCAS, Mexico — Vanderbilt rewrote the record book Tuesday with another resounding win, this one coming at the Cabo Collegiate in Mexico.
The 2022-23 Commodores became the first team in program history to win five regular-season tournament championships with a victory at the three-day event in Mexico. Vandy dominated all three rounds and beat Ole Miss by 12 strokes, winning the tournament for the second season in a row.
“What a great team win and certainly a win we should be very proud of!” Vandy head coach Scott Limbaugh said. “I’m so happy for our guys and the ownership they are taking of this team. I tell them often that when you own something you have to take care of it or it can get broken.
“Our guys are growing right now and winning is not easy or comfortable, but you have to embrace it and use it all for personal growth.”
Vandy has now won four tournaments in a row and 11 total since Feb. 23, 2022. It also finished first in stroke play at the 2022 NCAA Championships and finished second at the 2022 Linger Longer Invitational.
This week saw the Dores virtually lead wire-to-wire in besting a loaded field. Vanderbilt was one of only three teams to finish under-par and had three players in the top 10.
Wells Williams announced his presence to college golf with an impressive victory of his own. The freshman followed up a second-round 65 on Monday with a 67 on Tuesday to capture his first individual title.
Williams had just one bogey over his final 36 holes and beat three other golfers by five strokes with a 10-under-par 203.
“Obviously, so happy for Wells to get his first collegiate win. He played awesome this week and he keeps taking steps to show he belongs on this stage,” Limbaugh said. “To make only four bogeys for the week out there is really remarkable.
“He’s put a lot of work in on his putting and he’s starting to see the rewards of that. Coach (Gator) Todd did a great job helping him stay locked-in and they were really good out there together.”
Vandy also got a top-five finish from Matthew Riedel who ended the tournament at 4-under-par and tied for fifth. Gordon Sargent came in seventh at 3-under-par and Reid Davenport (+2) tied for 15th.
Cole Sherwood, the 2022 Cabo Collegiate individual medalist, tied for 35th overall at 6-over-par and Jackson Van Paris, competing as an individual, tied for 23rd (+4).
“Matthew had another good week and it’s exciting to see his continual growth. He had a tough finish today, but he will use it to make him better and we could not believe in him any more than we do,” Limbaugh said. “I was proud to see Reid, Gordon, Cole and Jackson all battling and competing to our standards. Gordon had another really solid week and continues to show why he’s one of the best players in college golf. The season he is having is truly phenomenal. Reid did a great job this week finding a way to score and he’s getting close to some really good golf.
“We wanted to finish the tournament the right way and have the low score of the day all three days. We didn’t like the way we finished the last tournament and we wanted to be better today. Although we came up one shot short of the low round today, I’m excited for how we handled the day. It was a good and tough setup this week and I our guys responded well to the challenge.”
Vanderbilt returns to the Southeast to compete at the Linger Longer Invitational starting March 19 in Eatonton, Georgia. Vandy starts the month of April at the Calusa Cup in Florida before hosting its annual Mason Rudolph Championship starting April 10.
“We will take a few days off and then get ready for the final half of our spring season and work to get better before championship season arrives,” Limbaugh said. “While we certainly aren’t disappointed with where we are, we have to continue to embrace getting better and being more consistent mentally and emotionally.
“We also have to stay hungry and humble as I believe those are championship values in golf and life. Thanks so much for all the support from our Vandy family this week! So fun to see these guys get that type of support.”
Sargent Named SwingU Golfer of the Month
Sargent was named the February 2023 SwingU College Player of the Month for Division I, it was announced Tuesday by SwingU and the Golf Coaches Association of America.
Sargent began his spring at the John Hayt Intercollegiate that included a course record-tying 64 en route to a seven-stroke victory at Sawgrass Country Club. The sophomore from Birmingham, Alabama, followed with back-to-back 66s that catapulted him to finish in a tie for second against a field that included six nationally-ranked teams at the Watersound Invitational on Feb. 21.
The No.1-ranked Commodores concluded each round at least tied for the lead before winning both tournaments.
The SwingU College Player of the Month is awarded to players from seven divisions—NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, HBCU, NAIA, NJCAA Division I, and NJCAA Division II—based on a voting committee made up of coaches from their respective divisions.
