Vukovits Secures First Victory At North Alabama Invite

STARKVILLE, Miss. — Austin Vukovits snagged his first career win on Tuesday after shooting 2-under 214 at the North Alabama Invite. The Mississippi State graduate student was the only player in the field to finish under par in the final round, breaking a tie for the lead after Monday’s first 36 holes.

 

𝕀ℕ𝔻𝕀𝕍𝕀𝔻𝕌𝔸𝕃 ℂℍ𝔸𝕄ℙ𝕀𝕆ℕ 🏆

Austin Vukovits has claimed his 𝑭𝑰𝑹𝑺𝑻 𝑪𝑨𝑹𝑬𝑬𝑹 𝑽𝑰𝑪𝑻𝑶𝑹𝒀 at the North Alabama Invite‼️#HailState🐶 pic.twitter.com/cXto6Q6ttQ

— Mississippi State Men’s Golf (@HailStateMG) October 18, 2022

“Going into the day I was in a good position to try and win, but had to stay patient throughout the day,” Vukovits said after his win. “It was cold and windy, so I knew it was going to play difficult. I got off to a hot start being 3-under through six holes. I then hit some adversity in the round but was able to bounce back and finished strong in the round.”

Vukovits had a bogey-free back nine with a birdie on the No. 11 hole that gave him a one-stroke edge over Southern Indiana’s Zach Williams. He did most of his work with a career-low 68 in Monday’s opening round.

“I’m really excited about winning and being able to be with my teammates while doing it,” Vukovits added.

With Vukovits’ victory, State has had at least one individual tournament champion in each of the last five seasons.

Two other Bulldogs also claimed top-five finishes. Alejandro Pedryc shot even par in challenging conditions to tie for third in his MSU debut. Pedro Cruz Silva finished tied for fifth, his highest career finish in the maroon and white.

“This week was a great opportunity for our players to test their games on a difficult golf course,” assistant coach Kolton Lapa said. “The conditions were tough, but our guys did a great job battling all three days to post quality scores. I was very proud of how Ben Loveard bounced back to post a good final round and the fight that Pedro and Alex showed all week, especially since this was their first event for us this year.”

Loveard climbed 21 spots on the leaderboard in the final round to finish tied for 23rd in his first collegiate event.

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