Snipes leads MG at SEC's

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Second-Round Results

SEA ISLAND, Ga. – The Vanderbilt men’s golf team used a second-round 68 from junior Will Snipes to vault into a tie for seventh at the SEC Men’s Golf Championships in Sea Island, Ga., at the par-70, 6,991-yard Seaside Course. The Commodores shot a second-round team score of 286 on Saturday and now have a team total of 575 (289-286) after two rounds of play.

Vanderbilt is tied for seventh with Tennessee and trails sixth-place Ole Miss by three strokes.

The final 18 holes will be played Sunday morning beginning at 7:30 a.m. Eastern Time, weather permitting. Sunday’s festivities were moved up 30 minutes due to impending rain entering the area later Saturday and early Sunday.

Snipes, from Dalton, Ga., tallied his 68 on three birdies, a bogey, and 14 pars in his second trip around the Seaside Course. His three birdies came at the 10th, 15th, and 16th holes. Sophomore Charlie Ewing continued his steady play with an even-par 70, and the Commodores also counted a pair of 74’s from senior Adam Hofmann and freshman Hunter Stewart, who birdied his 18th hole. Freshman Ben Fogler shot a second-round 76 to close out Vanderbilt’s scoring on Saturday.

Snipes is in a tie for 18th on the individual leaderboard with a total of 141 (73-68) to lead all Vanderbilt participants, and trails co-leaders Rick Lamb of Tennessee and Bobby Wyatt of Alabama by seven strokes.

Alabama, the eighth-ranked team in the country, is running away from the field with a 14-under par, 546 (272-274). The Crimson Tide lead Georgia and Auburn by 11 strokes.

“We had some rough stretches today in the middle of the round, but we held it together pretty well,” said Vanderbilt head coach Tom Shaw. “We had a solid round from Snipes today – he’s managing his game really well. He’s learning where to place his shots to maximize his score and how to play to his strengths and away from his weaknesses. He knows when to dial it back, and when to put the pedal down when he has too, something that eludes a lot of college golfers. Most of them like to have the pedal down all of the time.

“We hope the rain holds off and we get a chance to put together a good score on Sunday.”

T7. Vanderbilt – 289-286=575
T18. Will Snipes – 73-68=141
T32. Charlie Ewing – 74-70=144
T38. Adam Hofmann – 71-74=145
T38. Hunter Stewart – 71-74=145
T54. Ben Fogler – 78-76=154

Fashion Statement

The Commodores broke out their Saturday pinks at the Seaside Course for the second round as seen in the photo below.

Shaw, who played at Georgia Tech in the late 80’s, remembers his time on the links decked out in pink as a collegiate and tried to channel some of his college mojo into today’s round.

“It was actually Hof’s idea, so we let the guys go for it,” said Shaw. “Everybody loved them – we probably had 100 photos taken of us today.”

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