CARLSBAD, Calif. – The No. 16-ranked Vanderbilt men’s golf team battled Pacific winds in Round 2 of the 2025 NCAA Men’s Golf Championships on Saturday, but persevered, as the Commodores concluded the day in a tie for 15th at 6-over 294.
Vanderbilt, which opened in the morning wave on Hole 1 at Omni La Costa Resort and Spa, carded 6-under as a team on the front nine. The Commodores had to navigate the North Course’s tougher back nine through 17-mile-per-hour gusts coming in from the Pacific Ocean, which resulted in the Dores finishing their second-straight round at 6-over 294.
Vandy moved up four spots on the team leaderboard in Round 2, as the Commodores concluded the day in a tie for 15th with Wake Forest and Texas A&M. Vanderbilt has a 36-hole score of 12-over 588 and enters Sunday’s Round 3 on the cutline to advance to Monday’s final round of stroke play.
“We certainly knew we needed to come out fast today, the front nine has been more scorable, as we proved yesterday,” said Thomas F. Roush, M.D. and Family Vanderbilt Men’s Golf Head Coach Scott Limbaugh. “We played really well again on the front nine, made some birdies on No. 10. Once we started to get to Holes 12-16, we lost our way a little bit. Part of that is youth, and part of that is coaching. We’ve got to keep looking forward.”
Sophomore Chase Nevins paced the Commodores on Saturday, as the Great Falls, Virginia, native carded 2-under 70. Nevins was consistent on the day, as he only had one bogey and picked up three birdies. The sophomore shot up a remarkable 66 spots on the player leaderboard in Round 2, as he heads into Sunday in a tie for 64th with a 36-hole total of 4-over 148.
Junior Wells Williams also made a big move Round 2 under par, as the West Point, Mississippi, native went 1-under 71 to climb 56 places on the player leaderboard. The junior opened Saturday with three-straight birdies, as he made the turn at 3-under. Williams fought through the wind and took bogies on four of the five holes leading to the 18th. He buckled down and recorded his fourth birdie of the day on Hole 18.
Nevins, Williams and freshman Ryan Downes all head into Sunday with a two-round total of 4-over 148, as the trio is tied for 64th on the player leaderboard.
“I’m super proud of Chase, that was a big round he played for our team today,” Limbaugh stated. “He hung in there and looked in control all day. Wells gave us a big round today as well. We had everyone in it for a long time. I hate it for Jackson on how he finished today. He has carried the team all day yesterday, and I know how much this tournament means to him.”
Senior Jackson Van Paris went 6-over 78 on Saturday. He still holds the lowest two-round score for the Commodores at the 2025 NCAA Championships, as the All-American sits at 2-over 146. Van Paris heads into Round 3 in 45th place on the player leaderboard.
No. 5-ranked Arizona State took the lead at the 2025 NCAA Championship after 36 holes of play. The Sun Devils carded 11-under 277 in Round 2 to slide up four spots and claim the top spot on the team leaderboard at 13-under 563 heading into Sunday’s third round. ASU’s Connor Williams and Ole Miss’ Michael La Sasso hold a share of first place on the team leaderboard after two rounds. Each golfer has carded 9-under 135 and holds identical two-round scores of 68-67.
Round 3 of the 2025 NCAA Championships gets underway on Sunday at 8:30 a.m. CT. Vanderbilt holds the tie breaker for the No. 15 slotted tees time and will start its day at 10:20 a.m. CT from the first tee box. The Commodores open Round 3 on the cutline with Wake Forest and Texas A&M, as the top 15 teams at the end of Sunday move onto Monday’s Round 4. Fans can follow along with live scoring by clicking the link here.
“We’re not in a terrible spot, but we’ve got to continue to seize opportunities,” stated the head coach walking off the course early Saturday afternoon. “We’ve got to understand what happened today and what caused it. I know the character of this team, and I’m excited to see how we do going forward.”
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