GAINESVILLE, Fla.---The 20th-ranked Chattanooga men's golf team finished eighth at the SunTrust Gator Invitational Sunday at the Mark Bostick Golf Course at the University of Florida. The host Florida Gators ran away with the title winning by 18 strokes over second-place Ole Miss.
Junior Derek Rende led the Mocs with three rounds in the 60's and his first top 10 finish of the 2008-09 season finishing fourth. Rende's final round of 69 (-4) led UTC as did his first two rounds yesterday. He finished second in birdies with 15 for the weekend.
“It's great to see Derek back where he belongs...at the top of the leaderboard,” said Head Coach Mark Guhne. “He hit the ball well and was able to score. It's just a great start for him to build on.”
The Mocs played the front nine at two-over par as a team. Rende, Ben Rickett and Jonathan Hodge each shot even par, while Fredrik Qvicker and Stephan Jaeger turned at two over.
Chattanooga could not get things going as a team on the back nine as it dropped another shot to finish with a three-over par 283. For the 54 holes, the Mocs shot 851 (+11).
Qvicker shot even par on his back nine to finish the day with a two-over par 72. He finished tied for 35th at 216 (+6).
Hodge and Jaeger both completed their rounds at one-over par 71. Rickett, the Mocs highest ranked player at No. 23, shot four-over par on his back nine to finish at 74 (+4). The trio finished tied for 45th at 217 (+7).
“We played solid golf,” said Guhne. “We just didn't have enough help for Derek. Too many 72s and 73s. If we want to compete at the level we are capable of, we need to get those rounds in the 60s.”
Rende finished one shot back of a trio of golfers at five-under par. Florida's Toby Ragland won a seven-hole playoff over Billy Horschel and Simon Ward to capture medalist honors. Ward was out after three holes on Ragland and Horschel bidies.
No. 14 Florida dominated the field on its home course with four top 10 finishers. Ole Miss, ranked No. 35, finished second followed by (24) UCF, (33) Florida State, (25) Duke, Coastal Carolina, (31) LSU and (20) Chattanooga to round out the top eight.
Chattanooga topped Mississippi State by 15 shots, (28) Wake Forest by 16 and SoCon-rival Georgia Southern by 21.
The Mocs return to action next weekend at the John Hayt Collegiate played at the famed Sawgrass Country Club in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. The three-day, 54-hole event will be played Friday-Sunday, Feb. 22-24.
