The Vanderbilt men’s golf team played in their third tournament of the spring season this past week, placing second in the Linger Longer Invitational at the Great Waters Course at Reynolds Lake Oconee. The Commodores began the spring season on fire, winning both the Cabo Collegiate tournament and The Prestige tournament, but came up just short this week.
They started the week off strong, led by an opening-round 68 (-4) from Cole Sherwood, who was following up on his four-shot victory in Cabo. The other three scoring golfers, Harrison Ott, Reid Davenport and Jackson Van Paris, shot 70, 70 and 71, respectively, good enough for a combined score of 9 under par, and a one shot lead over Georgia.
Sherwood posted another solid 68 on Day 2, but the low rounds of the day for Vanderbilt came from freshman Gordon Sargent and junior William Moll, who both shot 67. Moll was competing as an individual however, so the team drew on a pair of 71s from Van Paris and Davenport. The course played easier on Day 2—despite Vanderbilt’s team score of 11 under par, Georgia managed to gain a stroke and tie it up at 20 under par going into the final day.
Sargent had another good round for Vanderbilt on Day 3, shooting a 3-under 69, good enough to tie Sherwood for the best Commodore score of the week and leave him tied at fourth for the tournament. Sherwood shot a disappointing 73 to close out the tournament, also finishing tied for fourth. Ott and Davenport closed out the scoring for the Commodores, respectively shooting 72 and 69, but it was not enough. Georgia shot 8 under as a team to edge out Vanderbilt and claim a four-shot victory.
The tournament was another step in the right direction for the Commodores against a talented field that featured six other Power Five programs, including three from the SEC. Sargent and Sherwood both played excellent golf all week, showing that they give this team a chance in any given tournament.
Head coach Scott Limbaugh commended the “level of consistency” from Sargent, and remarked that Sherwood continues to improve.
“Cole just continues to get better,” Limbaugh told VUCommodores.com.
Davenport shined on Day 3 with his 69 while his teammates were struggling, and all five golfers on the official team for the week placed in the top 22, with two in the top five. Even Moll, who was competing as an individual, flashed his potential with a Day 2 67, showing that he can contribute if he is needed.
Vanderbilt continues to get large contributions from its younger players. Van Paris and Sargent are both freshmen, and Sherwood is only in his sophomore year. All three have shown tremendous poise and confidence with their early-season results, and they figure to only get better as they prepare for the SEC Championships at the end of April.
Vanderbilt should have a great opportunity to boost their confidence with a hometown tournament at the Vanderbilt Legends Golf Club next weekend from April 1-3.
