The Bobcats traveled to Rochester Hills, Michigan for Oakland’s Golden Grizzlies Intercollegiate, looking to nab first place after an impressive third-place finish in the Joe Feaganes Invitational. The Bobcats finished the invitational in eighth place at +35.
In the first round, the Bobcats finished in fifth place at +15. Leading the team was junior Will Kates, shooting one under par with an even par front with nine pars and continuing his momentum on the back nine with a birdie on ten and then eight more pars.
Following him came junior Nathaniel Gray Lamont and freshman Rylan Hall, both shooting four over par. Gray Lamont started off slow on the front nine with three straight bogeys before settling down with two straight birdies on holes four and five, and three pars.
Hall had a strong front nine, shooting one over on the front, starting off with four straight pars before picking up bogeys on five and seven before bouncing back with a birdie on six and two straight pars. He started off strong on the back with birdies on ten and twelve before picking up two costly double bogeys on holes 14 and 18.
Junior Carson Trafford finished the first eight over par. He started the round with a strong front nine that included eight pars and a double bogey on nine. However, the back nine was a different story for Trafford, as he went par, birdie and par on holes 10-12 before finishing bogey, double bogey, bogey, par, double bogey and par.
Rounding out the group was freshman Jack Flores, who shot nine over par. The freshman had a solid front with five pars, a birdie and three bogeys (+2) before picking up two bogeys, a double bogey and a costly triple bogey on 17.
The Bobcats turned it around in the second round, dropping seven strokes and finishing eight over. Gray Lamont led the way, shooting one over with an impressive front nine that included an eagle on the fifth and five pars. On the back, he continued his success with six pars, two birdies and a double bogey to shoot even.
Kates and Trafford finished the second both shooting two over par. Kates finished with 14 pars, a birdie on the ninth and three bogeys. Trafford shot one under on the front with two birdies, six pars and a bogey on the second. While on the back nine, two costly double bogeys pushed him to three over par.
Flores bounced back, shooting three over par with a great front nine, starting off the front nine with a bogey before nabbing eight consecutive pars. Heading to the back, he started off with three straight pars before three straight bogeys on holes 13-15 before bouncing back with a birdie on 17 to finish two over.
Rounding out the group came Hall, finishing four over. He started off with two bogeys on holes 1 and 4 before dominating the last five holes, including back-to-back birdies on eight and nine. Turning the corner, two double bogeys slowed his momentum, but he finished strong with four pars, a birdie and a bogey.
The Bobcats finished the final round with a solid +12 to finish in eighth place. Gray Lamont and Trafford led the pack, both shooting two over. Gray Lamont had another great round with 16 pars and two bogeys, while Trafford finished with two birdies, two bogeys and 14 pars. Following them came Kates and Hall both finishing four over.
The Bobcats individually placed the following: Kates in 14th (+4), Gray Lamont in 22nd (+7), Trafford and Hall tied for 37th (+12) and Flores in 58th (+18). The team led the invitational with the best score on par 5s at two under, with an average score of 4.96 and pars with 181. Individually, Trafford tied for second on par 5s at three under, and Kates placed second for most pars (44) and sixth lowest score on par 4s with an average score of 4.03.
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