EATONTON, Ga. — Vanderbilt got off to a slow start Sunday before finishing strong in the first round of the Linger Longer Invitational.
The Commodores were one of just four teams to finish under-par after the 18 holes. Their 2-under-par 286 is three shots behind co-leaders Alabama and Georgia.
“I thought our guys did a great job kind of hanging in there after a slow start,” Vandy head coach Scott Limbaugh said. “Really proud of how we battled. Think that says a lot about our competitive character.
“It was a cool and breezy day and I thought a pretty tough test. We didn’t quite finish the final hole to our standards, but that’s part of it and all part of our growth process. We have to keep learning from our mistakes and I believe we will.”
Gordon Sargent had the best round of the day for the Dores. The sophomore had seven birdies, including three straight at one point, and is tied for fourth overall at 3-under-par.
Sargent is one stroke back of co-leaders Hugo Lari of Kennesaw State, Connor Howe of Georgia Tech and Connor Creasy of Georgia.
Cole Sherwood and Wells Williams also finished under-par as each carded an opening-round 71 and are tied for 12th. Matthew Riedel (+3) is tied for 42nd and Reid Davenport (+5) is tied for 65th.
Jackson Van Paris and William Moll are both competing as individuals at the event. Van Paris (tied for eighth) shot a 70 on Sunday and Moll (tied for 16th) finished with a 72.
“Monday is an important day because it’s moving day and our next chance to compete together. We need to have everyone competing to our standards, locked in and ready to go from the start.”
Vanderbilt is scheduled to tee off at 10:40 a.m. CT Monday alongside Alabama, Georgia and Virginia. Live scoring for the event can be found HERE.
