LITTLE ROCK – Little Rock closed out the fall portion of its 2019-20 schedule with a fourth-place finish at the Little Rock Invitational, its annual host event at Chenal Country Club. The Trojans posted a 14-over 302 over the final 18 holes, finishing with a 16-over 880 and its third top-five team finish of the year.
2019 Little Rock Invitational Final Results (PDF)
The Trojans saw a pair of golfers finish among the individual top-20, led by sophomore
Marcel Rauch tying for 14th overall at 3-over 219 to log his first career top-20 showing. Rauch closed out the final round with a 3-over 75 and was among the top players in the event in par-five scoring, finishing at 7-under with a 4.42 average.
Sophomore
Anton Albers joined Rauch in the top-20, tying for 18th overall at 4-over 220. Albers posted the low round of the day for the Trojans on a windy day at Chenal, finishing with a 1-over 73 for his first top-20 showing of the year and third of his Little Rock career, highlighting the par-fours for Little Rock with a 1-over and 4.03 average.
Senior
Logan Pate finished just outside the top-20, tying for 23rd at 6-over 222, including an 8-over 80 over the final 18 holes. Pate finished two shots better of junior
Aaron Ramos' 8-over 224 and was six shots ahead of sophomore
Devon Whitaker, who posted a 76 and 78, respectively, over Tuesday's final round.
Three Trojans competed as individuals as well among the 87-player field, with seniors
Carter Patterson and
Danial Durisic closing out their final events at Chenal with a 14-over 230 while freshman
Alejandro De Zavala notched a 25-over 241.
While skies were sunny, wind was the biggest factor throughout the final round, forcing to scores to elevate across the board. Entering the day in second place, one shot out of first, Little Rock slipped back to fourth and finished eight shots off the pace, three strokes behind third-place Middle Tennessee at 13-over 877.
Illinois State and Campbell both came on strong over the final round, jumping five and three positions, respectively, and tying for the team title at 8-over 872. The Redbirds then defeated the Camels in a one-hole playoff on 18 to capture the team title. Texas Tech's Markus Braadlie then outlasted Campbell's Max Theodorakis in a one-hole playoff to take home the individual title.
The fourth-place finish showing for Little Rock also earned the Trojans two points in the Governor's I-40 Showdown for the 2019-20 season as Central Arkansas placed 11th with a 36-over 900, 20 shots back of host Little Rock.
With the annual host tournament at Chenal wrapped up, Little Rock wraps up a productive fall season – one which saw the Trojans finish in the top-six of all four tournaments they competed in and reach number 70 in the first GolfStat rankings of the year, the program's best mark since the 2001-02 season.
Little Rock will now take a nearly three-month hiatus before opening the spring portion of the schedule in Arizona in January. The Trojans return to action at the Arizona Intercollegiate, being held January 27-28, 2020, in Tucson.
2019 Little Rock Invitational Final Results
Players in italics competed as individuals
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