OLYMPIA FIELDS, Ill. – Three Alabama golfers finished among the top-20 individuals to lead the Crimson Tide to a fifth-place finish at the OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational. UA closed the three-day event with a season-best team total of 1-under 279 on Sunday to result in a 54-hole total of 850 (290-281-279).
Canon Claycomb and Thomas Ponder again led the charge for the Tide, as both finished among the top-10 individuals for a second straight tournament. Claycomb closed play in eighth overall with a 1-under par 209 (69-72-68) following Sunday’s 2-under 68, while Ponder tied for ninth overall with an even par 210 (68-69-73). It marks Claycomb’s eighth career top-10 result, while Ponder earned his seventh.
Freshman Nick Dunlap overcame a tough first round as he finished tied for 20th with a 54-hole total of 4-over 214 (77-67-70), which gave Alabama three individuals among the top-20 finishers.
No. 15 Stanford (-9, 831) was the only team to finish under par to claim the team title by 12 strokes over tournament host No. 11 Illinois (+3, 843) and No. 5 Arizona State (+3, 843). No. 3 Florida (+3, 843) finished seven strokes ahead of the Tide to claim fourth overall
“I really am proud of the way our guys responded over the final 36 holes. This is a tough tournament, and it becomes that much tougher when you start the way we did. The course here will really reveal a lot of things and I am proud how we competed after a disappointing first round. I believe we have a chance to be a special team this year, but you can’t be special and have days like we did. I did think we bounced back nicely and that was encouraging. It’s great to get a top-five finish here in what was a very challenging field. I think we also went up a couple of notches when it comes to being able to trust one another and that is only going to help us as the season continues.”
The Highlights
- After ending round one in 12th position overall with a 290, the Crimson Tide ended the event with the second best team score in both round two and round three to vault seven spots up the leaderboard over the final 36 holes played
- Claycomb, who entered the event ranked No. 9 in the PGA Tour University rankings, carded a 2-under 68 Sunday consisted of three birdies and a bogey as it marked the fourth time in six rounds this year, and 18th time in his career, that he has shot in the 60s
- Claycomb tied for third among all individuals on par 3 holes, averaging 2.83…
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