Oak Hills Invitational
Weld captures collegiate best at Oak Hills
2/9/2016 6:45:00 PM | Men's Golf
Sam Houston State freshman Mason Weld shot a 7-over, 220, to finish in a six-way tie for 14th, his highest collegiate finish in five tournaments of play as the Bearkats secured ninth at 44-over, 896, from the UTSA Oak Hills Invitational at San Antonio's par-71, 6,765-yard Oak Hills Country Club.
During his final two rounds, Weld (76-73-71 – 220) surged ahead 23 spots on the leaderboard. His final-round even-par 71 was the ninth lowest score of the round among a field of 84 golfers.
“He only had one bad stretch for nine holes or he would have been up there in first,” fourth-year head coach Brandt Kieschnick said. “I think it gave him confidence. He finished just eight shots back of the leader. I think he knows as a freshman he can win at a high level.”
No. 11 Oklahoma and No. 44 Baylor entered the day deadlocked at 7-over, 575 but the Bears used 4-over final round to secure the tournament title. Louisiana Tech's Victor Lange claimed the individual title, besting Texas State's David Faraudo on the first hole (No. 18) of a sudden-death playoff.
“We finished ninth but we had some positives,” Kieschnick said. “We were around the lead with the No. 10 team in the country in the first round. These young guys went one round with them but then we made some mistakes. We had a good talk afterward about what we need to do to get better.”
Junior Andrew Ertel (77-72-76 – 225), who had moved up 21 spots following a difficult opening round, finished in a six-way tie for 37th. He was followed by redshirt freshman Jesse Massenagle (74-77-75 – 226) who landed in a three-way tie for 43rd.
Meanwhile, freshman Camden DeBonis (74-77-77 – 228) finished 15-over in a five-way tie for 49th while sophomore Jake McCrory (75-81-76 – 232) climbed four spots during his final round to secure a five-way tie in 61st and freshman Sean Foley (81-79-82 – 242), playing individually, went tied for 82nd.
Weld's strong finish was backed by steady play on the course's four par 3's where he finished in a tie for the fifth-best score at 1-over. The Helotes native was also near the top of the leaderboard on the course's 11 par 4's, shooting 3-over.
Massengale and DeBonis each posted impressive 4-under on the three par 5's, while Massengale was among just 19 players to record an eagle in the two-day tournament, doing so on the 10th hole during his second round.
“The message was that the way we played the first round is a conference championship team,” Kieschnick said. “They know I am holding them accountable. I know our good is as good as anyone we play against. They need to tighten things up. We can be right there. It's not a talent issue, we just have to focus a little better.”
Louisiana Tech finished third at 23-over, 875, followed by North Texas (33-over, 885), McNeese State (34-over, 886), UTSA (35-over, 887), Wichita State (38-over, 890) and Southeastern Louisiana (42-over, 894) in eighth.
The Kats return to action Feb. 19-21 at the All-American Intercollegiate from Humble's Golf Club of Houston. The three-day, 54-hole event will feature another premier lineup of competitors from the 6,967-yard, par-72 course.
