EATONTON, Ga. – The No. 11/10-ranked Vanderbilt men’s golf team posted its second-best 54-hole score of the 2025-26 season at the 20th Linger Longer Invitational, as the Commodores carded 20-under 844 to finish in third place.
The Dores had their best round of the three-day event in Sunday’s finale. Vandy carded 11-under 277 in Round 3 to move up two spots on the team leaderboard and leave the Great Waters Course at Reynolds Lake Oconee with a third-place finish. Vandy’s score of 20-under 844 marks the team’s lowest 54-hole score of the spring, while it’s the Commodores’ second-lowest three-round total of the 2025-26 season.
The Commodores collected a top-five finish for the sixth time this season. Vandy has concluded two of its three spring tournaments inside the top three. A trio of Dores carded under par at the Linger Longer Invitational, while freshman Jon Ed Steed and senior Wells Williams both posted a top 10 finish.
“We got off to a good start today, and it was good to create some momentum,” said Thomas F. Roush, M.D., and Family Vanderbilt Men’s Golf Head Coach Scott Limbaugh. “It was an important day for us, and it’s good to see some guys step up. Jon Ed and Wells were steady all day long, which was big for us. I’m really proud of Will and how well he hung in there all week in his first start. We need to take the momentum from today into how we prepare and get better moving forward. We did a lot of good things, but we’ve got a lot to improve on and tighten up. Everything we want is in front of us, but we have to put in the work.”
Steed collected the first top-five finish of his young collegiate career, claiming fourth place with a career-low score of 9-under 207. The freshman carded under par in each round over the weekend, posting scores of 69-70-68. Steed opened Sunday with three-straight birdies on Holes 1-3, then on his back nine, carded 1-under on Holes 11, 12 and 17 to move up three spots on the player leaderboard and finish in fourth. His 16 birdies led the team and tied for fifth-most in the tournament.
Williams tied for sixth at the Linger Longer Invitational with a season-low three-round score of 7-under 209. The West Point, Mississippi, native had his best round of the tournament on Sunday, carding a team-best 5-under 67 to slide up 12 places and tie for sixth. It is the sixth time that Williams has placed in the top 10 through seven tournaments this season. The senior’s score counted in all three rounds over the weekend, as he pushes his consecutive rounds counted streak to 57 rounds dating back to the 2023-24 season.
Freshman Will Hartman, who was playing in the Vanderbilt lineup for the first time in his collegiate career, tied for 23rd with a career-low three-round total of 2-under 214. The first-year Commodore carded a personal-best 3-under 69 in Round 3 and held round scores of 71-74-69.
Georgia successfully defended its home soil at the Linger Longer Invitational in Eatonton, Georgia. The Bulldogs won the event by 21 strokes, UGA carded 48-under 816. Georgia’s Carter Loflin won medalist honors with a score of 18-under 198.
Vandy now takes a week off from competition before hosting the annual Mason Rudolph Championship at Vanderbilt Legends Club on April 3-5. Check back with VUCommodores.com for a full tournament preview.
“I would love for all of our Vandy Golf fans and supporters to show up for us at the Mason Rudolph in two weeks,” Limbaugh expressed. “I know our team would love that.”
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