New Mexico edges Arizona to win the National Invitational Tournament
New Mexico Men's Golf Team (New Mexico Athletics Photo)
New Mexico recorded its second victory of the season, shooting a school-record 51-under to win the National Invitational Tournament at Tucson National Golf Resort in Tucson, Ariz. Arizona, the 2023 champions, finished one shot behind New Mexico in solo second place at 50-under.
The talented field included 11 teams in the top 60 nationally.
The Lobos concluded the second round on Tuesday morning by finishing a school-record round of 265. It broke the previous single-round record of 268 set during the second round of this fall’s Alister MacKenzie Invitational in California. New Mexico capped the tournament with a final round 275 to finish at 51-under, breaking the Lobos’ previous scoring record of 42-under set last spring at the NCAA Salem Regional.
Arizona State finished in solo third place at 49-under, while BYU finished in solo fourth place at 42-under, and Missouri finished in fifth place at 34-under.
Zac Jones of BYU won the individual title at 18-under, edging out Arizona State freshman Wenyi Ding by one shot. An eagle on the par-4 No. 13 by Jones and birdies on Holes No. 17 and 18 were the difference in a round that saw the golfers take advantage of the course throughout the tournament. Ding also made birdies on No. 17 and 18, but Jones was able to match that and stay one shot ahead in a thrilling finish.
Ding finished in solo second place at 17-under, Bastien Amat of New Mexico and Tiger Christensen of Arizona finished T3 at 16-under and Daniel Rodrigues of Texas A&M and Jack Lundin of Missouri finished T5 at 15-under. Muzzy Donohue of Santa Clara and Preston Summerhays of Arizona State finished T7 at 14-under.
Jones shot an 8-under 64 in the final round to propel into the lead, recording seven birdies, an eagle, and a bogey.
ABOUT THE National Invitational Collegiate
54 hole men's college tournament hosted by the
University of Arizona. Team (best four scores of five
players each day) and individual competitions.
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