TOLEDO, Ohio — The No. 3-ranked Vanderbilt men’s golf team wrapped up its first tournament of the 2024-25 season on Tuesday by finishing tied for third at the Inverness Intercollegiate after carding 3-over 831 over three rounds of play.
A pair of Vandy golfers opened the year with a top-10 finish. Senior Jackson Van Paris tied for sixth on the player leaderboard after carding 3-under 204. It is Van Paris’ sixth career top-10 finish. Junior John Broderick made the most of his debut in the Commodore lineup, as the Wellesley, Massachusetts, native carded 2-under 205 to end in a tie for seventh.
The Commodores posted the second-best team score in Round 3, as Vandy carded 5-under 271 over its final 18 holes. Vanderbilt moved up two places on the team leaderboard on Tuesday, as the Dores concluded their season-opening tournament in a tie for third place with SEC newcomer, Oklahoma.
“I am so proud of our guys today,” said head coach Scott Limbaugh. “We wanted to play our best round of the tournament and play with some soul. Days like this help shape your identity and truly build your competitive character. Jackson and John were solid all week long and both looked strong out there. John earned his opportunity to compete this week and did a great job stepping up for the team.”
Van Paris ended his run in Toledo by notching five birdies on his way to a 1-under final round. Broderick posted a 1-under round in Tuesday’s finale. The junior carded 2-under 205 to set a new personal-best 54-hole total.
Junior Wells Williams tied for 18th individually with a 3-over 210 total for the week. He concluded his stay in Toledo by carding 1-under par on Tuesday. 2022 NCAA individual champion Gordon Sargent rebounded on Tuesday to fire his best round of the tournament. The senior carded a team-best 2-under 67 in Round 3 to finish in a tie for 33rd at 6-over 213.
“I thought what Gordon did today said a lot about the type of character he has, that’s leadership,” said Limbaugh. “Wells is doing a lot of great things, and I am happy with how he battled after a slow start yesterday. Ryan and Rowan both did a lot of good things, and we know they can both help us.”
Freshman Ryan Downes carded 1-over in Round 3 to close out his Vanderbilt debut in a tie for 43rd at 8-over 215. Sullivan, who made his Commodore debut as an individual at the Inverness, carded even par in Tuesday’s final round to finish in a tie for 33rd at 6-over par.
Virginia won the 2024 Inverness Intercollegiate with a 2-under team total, beating Auburn by two strokes. The Commodores led the tournament with 39 total birdies, 19 of which came during the final round. Auburn’s Jackson Koivun captured the tournament’s individual title after he carded 9-under 198 during the week.
Vanderbilt will be back on the course in a little under two weeks to compete at the Valero Texas Collegiate in San Antonio, Texas, on Sept. 21-24. The Dores look to defend their team title in San Antonio, as Vandy won last year’s Valero Texas Collegiate to open the 2023-24 campaign.
“The journey is long, but the days are short and you have to enjoy it,” expressed Limbaugh. “We did some things really well this week, and we have a lot to improve on, which will be the challenge. We have to fall forward together while learning to own our actions.”
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