University of South Carolina Upstate Athletics
Holiday Inn Express/CFSC Classic
Lawrence Finishes 7th At Stetson/CFSC Invitational
11/3/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
Nov. 3, 2009
DeLand, Fla. - Defending tournament champion Michael Lawrence didn't bring home the hardware for winning another individual championship this year, but he certainly made a tremendous effort in defending his title, carding a final round 73 to finish tied for seventh at the Stetson/CFSC Invitational Tuesday afternoon at Victoria Hills Golf Club.
Lawrence finished the tournament at even-par 216 to claim a share of seventh place, finishing as the low Spartan in the tournament. It marked his first top 10 finish of the season and the 10th of his career. He finished the tournament fourth with 11 birdies, tied for fourth in par-3 scoring and sixth in par-5 scoring.
"Michael played a good round today," said Upstate head coach Todd Lawton. "I think he would be the first to tell you that he missed a couple of shots and wasn't able to capitalize on some birdie opportunities. But, he should be very proud of his efforts in this tournament."
Lawrence helped Upstate take fifth place in the team standings, eight shots back of Stetson in fourth and eight shots ahead of Rollins in sixth. Florida Gulf Coast won the tournament with an 851 total and was followed by Florida Atlantic (874), Murray State (878), Stetson (883), Upstate (891), Rollins (897), Jacksonville (907), Lipscomb (912) and Bethune-Cookman (918). FGCU's Patrick Williams won the individual title with a 6-under-par 210 total.
Brian Horton had a strong tournament and capped his two days at Victoria Hills with a 73 to match Lawrence for the low round of the day for Upstate. He finished 25th for his first top 25 effort in his career. He posted rounds of 78, 76 and 73, lowering his score each day.
"Brian had some birdies and got some up-and-downs that he needed to shoot a solid 73," said Lawton. "It was a solid effort, but he certainly wants more and is hungry to work harder to improve on some things."
Josh Gallman, who had his string of top 10 finishes snapped while playing under the weather throughout the tournament, still posted a solid effort and finished tied for 15th with a 222 total. He finished the tournament with a 74 Tuesday. Tyler Comer carded a 77 Tuesday and finished 31st, while Matthew Hopper added an 85 and finished tied for 36th.
"The key for all of us in the fall was seeing where we all stood," said Lawton. "We need to fine tune our scoring. When we get in position to hit shots a little out of the normal, we need to concentrate and hit good shots which will allow us to shoot better scores by each player which can make a big difference in how we finish as a team. We have a one-two punch with Josh and Michael who finished with a lot of rounds at par or better this fall, and that is a lot of leadership heading into the spring."
