PANAMA CITY, Fla. – The No. 3/3-ranked Vanderbilt men’s golf team sits in third place at the end of Round 1 of the 2026 Watersound Invitational, as the Commodores had three golfers finish the first day of the 2026 spring season inside the top 15.
The Dores carded 7-under 273 during their first go-around at The Third Golf Course at the Watersound Club on Monday. Vandy ended Round 1 four strokes behind the current leader, No. 8 Arkansas, and three strokes off second place, No. 9 Ole Miss.
“I am proud of our guys and how they battled to finish strong after a slow start,” said Thomas F. Roush, M.D., and Family Vanderbilt Men’s Golf Head Coach Scott Limbaugh. “We didn’t lose our patience, which allowed us to stay in the round. I think that says a lot about the character of this group. We made a few course management decisions that cost us some shot and we need to clean that up going forward. It was good to see Michael and John finish their rounds so well and get us some momentum. Will had a really good day today and showed a ton of consistency with only one bogey. Today is the first day of our spring journey, and it was a good beginning. We need to be ready from the start tomorrow with a purpose and sense of urgency.”
Freshman Michael Riebe led a quartet of Commodores who finished under par on the first day of the spring. The Encinitas, California, native opened the Watersound Invitational at 4-under 66 to end his day in third on the player leaderboard. Riebe’s seven birdies were the most by any golfer on Monday, as he caught fire towards the end of his round, carding 1-under on four of his final seven holes.
Seniors John Broderick and Wells Williams, along with freshman Will Hartman, each carded 2-under 68 on Monday, as all three Commodores go into Round 2 tied for 13th.
Broderick was one of seven golfers to collect an eagle during Round 1, as he finished 2-under on the par-3 Hole 14. The Wellesley, Massachusetts, native posted the second-best par-3 score on Monday at 2-under. Additionally, it was Broderick’s third under-par round in six total rounds played during the 2025-26 season.
Williams extended his consecutive round-counted streak to 51. The All-American collected six birdies, which was tied for the second-most in Round 1. His performance on Monday marked Williams’ ninth under-par performance in 13 rounds played this season.
Hartman, who is one of three Vanderbilt golfers playing as individuals at the Watersound Invitational, had the best round of his young Commodore career on Monday, as he finished a personal-best 2-under 68 in Round 1. The Marvin, North Carolina, native had 14 pars, which are the second-most in the field.
No. 8 Arkansas ends the first day of the Watersound Invitational in first place at 11-under 269. No. 9 Ole Miss sits in second place at 10-under 270. Mississippi State’s Jackson Skinner concluded the opening round of the tournament in first place on the player leaderboard with an 18-hole score of 6-under 64.
No. 3 Vanderbilt tees off Round 2 of the Watersound Invitational at 10 a.m. CT. Fans can click the link here to follow along with live scoring via SCOREBOARD powered by Clippd.
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