Mason Williams shot an 11-under-par 199 and tied for first to lead the Georgia Southern men's golf team to a second-place finish at the Vystar Credit Union Gators Invitational Sunday at Mark Bostick Golf Course.
Florida's Ricky Castillo led Williams by two strokes with two holes to go, but Williams birdied 17 and parred 18 while Castillo made par at 17 but bogeyed 18, sending the duo to a playoff. Castillo won the playoff to earn medalist honors.
Eighth-ranked Florida (-14) won its home event, and Georgia Southern (+4) finished second, a stroke ahead of third-place Liberty (+5). North Florida (+13) finished fourth, a stroke ahead of South Florida (+14).
It's the second-best finish for the Eagles in their 22nd time playing in the event. The 1979-80 team won the tournament, and the Eagles finished fourth a season ago. It's Williams' third top-10 finish this season, his second top-5 of the campaign and the ninth top-5 of his career.
Play was suspended last night with teams needing to complete three holes to finish the second round. They finished the second round and played the third in rainy, windy conditions today. Average scores in today's third round jumped up almost three strokes from yesterday's first round, going from 71.84 to 74.80.
Williams posted a clean card with five birdies to shoot 65 in the second round. Sparked by an eagle on the 565-yard, par-5 7th, he played the front 2-under in the third round, and the birdie on 17 helped send him to a 68.
Ben Carr made six birdies, including three in a row at holes 13-15, and shot 67 in the second round. The fifth-year senior posted a 74 in the third round to finish 2-over and tie for 11th.
After shooting a 69 in the first round, Wilson Andress played the back nine 2-under with birdies at 12 and 15 to post 71 in the second round. Freshman Parker Claxton, who made his debut in the lineup this week, shot 73 in the second round and played his final 10 holes of the third round 1-under with a birdie at 17 to shoot 72.
Results
Team – 277-276-291=844 (+4), 2
Mason Williams – 66-65-68=199 (-11), T1
Ben Carr – 71-67-74=212 (+2), T11
Wilson Andress – 69-71-77=217 (+7), T29
Parker Claxton – 73-73-72=218 (+8), T34
Hogan Ingram – 71-75-78=224 (+14), T59
Colin Bowles* - 79-76-71=226 (+16), T64
*Playing as an individual
Quotables from Coach Carter Collins
"Awesome week for the boys in a great field. Runner-up team finish to Florida, the home team and ranked eighth in the country, is a strong finish."
"I'm proud of the guys for fighting until the end. Brutal conditions today, and they never quit or let the weather get the best of them."
"It's a great foundation to build the rest of our spring season on, Hail Southern!"
Next Up
The Eagles return to action at the Colleton River Collegiate March 6-7. The event is hosted by Michigan State at the Colleton River Club in Bluffton, South Carolina.