FRANKLIN, Tenn. – The #9-ranked Vanderbilt Commodores’ men’s golf team carded a two-round total of two-under par, 566 (275-291) on the first day of the Mason Rudolph Championship and lead second-place Florida by three shots heading into the final round on Sunday. Three Commodores, freshman Will Gordon, junior Matthias Schwab, and sophomore Theo Humphrey are all in the top four on the individual leader board to lead the team on the day.
Gordon paced the Vanderbilt effort with a two-round score of 140 (69-71), which places him in a tie for second with Florida’s Sam Horsfield and trails individual leader Gordon Neale of Florida by two shots. Schwab (67-74) and Humphrey (71-70) each finished their round at 141 and are in a tie for fourth.
For the day, Vanderbilt led all teams with 34 birdies on the day, with the Commodores also setting the pace in pars (114), par three scoring (3.04), and par four scoring (4.11). Schwab (9) and Gordon (8) led the field in birdies in the opening two rounds.
“I thought it was really a tale of two different days out there today,” said Vanderbilt head coach Scott Limbaugh. “This morning, we really played well with all five guys in control of what they were trying to do. I thought it was a really great start in windy conditions. Matthias played a really stellar round with Michael and Will playing solid as well. Then in the afternoon round, everything got a little out of sorts. We always talk about that when things are hard it makes you better and it was definitely hard this afternoon. Theo’s round was really big for our team and lifted us up when we had to have it. Also, Will showed a lot of resiliency after the triple bogey on #10 and showed what makes him a special player. Rounds like this help you grow as a player and as a team because you find out exactly what you are when things are that difficult. I am so proud of how we stayed the course and finished for the most part.”
Other Vanderbilt scorers on Saturday included a 146 (70-76) from freshman Patrick Martin, which places him in a tie for 20th, and sophomore Michael Decker, who carded a 149 (69-80), which places him in a tie for 36th.
Senior Carson Jacobs, playing as an individual, is in a tie for eighth with a 143 (70-73). Other individuals included senior John Voetsch (74-73=147, T-28), junior Zachary Herr (75-73=148, T-32), senior Spencer Ciesla (78-74=152, T-51), and senior Zack Jaworski (74-78=152, T-51).
“Tomorrow will be another opportunity for us on our journey and we need to be excited about that,” said Limbaugh. “We need to have the right kind of focus and control the things we can control.”
The final 18 holes of the Mason Rudolph Championship will be played on Sunday morning, beginning at 8 a.m. off of the number one tee and 8:15 a.m. off of number 10.
1. Vanderbilt
T2. Will Gordon – 69-71=140
T4. Matthias Schwab – 67-74=141
T4. Theo Humphrey – 71-70=141
T20. Patrick Martin – 70-76=146
T36. Michael Decker – 69-80=149
Individuals
T8. Carson Jacobs – 70-73=143
T28. John Voetsch – 74-73=147
T32. Zach Herr – 75-73=148
T51. Spencer Ciesla – 78-74=152
T51. Zack Jaworski – 74-78=152
