The Kenyon College Lords kicked off the 2015-16 golf season by participating in the ultra-competitive Transylvania University Fall Invitational, which included three nationally-ranked teams, as well as five teams that competed in last season’s NCAA Championship. In the end, Kenyon wound up taking ninth-place among the 16 competing teams.
The Invitational played out over two days and 54 holes at the par-72 Big Blue Course at the University Club of Kentucky. Kenyon opened with a solid round of 298, clipped it to a 295 later in the day Saturday and then wrapped things up with a 302 Sunday. The Lords’ final total of 895 was just one stroke back of the total posted by Spalding University, a team ranked No. 20 nationally. The 895 was also a Kenyon record for a full 54-hole tournament.
Transylvania, ranked just outside of the Top 25, won the tournament with a three-round total of 866. Wittenberg University, ranked No. 4, tied for second at 872 with Guilford College, ranked No. 8. Individually, Greensboro College’s Levi Grogan won medalist honors with a final score of 209. He fired a 71 in the first round and then followed up with identical rounds of 69.
For Kenyon, senior Jordan Harlacher led the way. He tied for an individual 20th-place finish with rounds of 70, 76 and 75 for a 221. Freshman Robert Williams, playing in his first collegiate tournament, was not far off that pace. He tied for 28th place with a total of 224 by firing rounds of 75, 75 and 74.
Senior Jacob Fait went 73, 75 and 78 for 226 and a tie for 36th place. Sophomore Ryan Muthiora finished with a 229 to tie for 47th place and junior Mason McCool carded a 231 and a tie for 54th place among the elite field of 89 golfers.
