Tuesday, January 30
Ponte Vedra, FL
18 Holes
Louisiana Tech University
at
Sea Best Invitational
Photo by: Josh McDaniel
Maki-Petaja Claims Top 5 Finish, Bulldogs Place Ninth
1/30/2024 5:41:00 PM | Men's Golf
Bulldog freshman shines as LA Tech closes out first event of spring slate
PONTE VEDRA, Fla. – Louisiana Tech's Niilo Maki-Petaja continued his strong play in round three on Tuesday at TPC Sawgrass, shooting 70 (E) to finish in a tie for fourth among the 84-player field at the Sea Best Invitational.
It was a jam-packed leaderboard for much of the final round as 4th through 10th was separated by half a dozen strokes throughout the morning, a portion that included LA Tech.
The Bulldogs had a chance to move up from their 8th-place position coming into round three, but a tough finish on the final three holes dropped them back to ninth shooting 297-288-288=873 (+33).
Maki-Petaja was steady with three birdies, three bogeys, and 12 pars to make it three straight rounds at or under par for the freshman in recording his first career top-5 finish.
Will Patrick and Lake Juban each registered their best round of the tournament, shooting 72 (+2) apiece to finish tied for 48th and 55th, respectively.
Hunter Battles was the fourth scorecard used in the third round. The senior was flirting with a top-20 finish, but a triple-bogey on the last hole dropped him into a tie for 33rd as an individual shooting 74 (+4).
No. 26 Florida took home the title, followed by North Florida and Louisville who both rank in the top 50 in the country.
NOTABLES
LA Tech will be back in action Feb. 12-13 at the Hal Williams Collegiate in Mobile, Alabama. The two-day event will be hosted by South Alabama.
SOCIAL MEDIA
For all the latest in Bulldog Golf, follow us on Twitter (@LATechGolf), Instagram (@LATech_Golf), and Facebook (LATechGolf).
It was a jam-packed leaderboard for much of the final round as 4th through 10th was separated by half a dozen strokes throughout the morning, a portion that included LA Tech.
The Bulldogs had a chance to move up from their 8th-place position coming into round three, but a tough finish on the final three holes dropped them back to ninth shooting 297-288-288=873 (+33).
Maki-Petaja was steady with three birdies, three bogeys, and 12 pars to make it three straight rounds at or under par for the freshman in recording his first career top-5 finish.
Will Patrick and Lake Juban each registered their best round of the tournament, shooting 72 (+2) apiece to finish tied for 48th and 55th, respectively.
Hunter Battles was the fourth scorecard used in the third round. The senior was flirting with a top-20 finish, but a triple-bogey on the last hole dropped him into a tie for 33rd as an individual shooting 74 (+4).
No. 26 Florida took home the title, followed by North Florida and Louisville who both rank in the top 50 in the country.
NOTABLES
- LA Tech totaled 173 pars in the three rounds, tied for the third most in the field.
- LA Tech recorded victories over Campbell (176), Liberty (66), Florida Atlantic (124), UCF (157), Jacksonville (113), and USC Upstate (265).
- Niilo Maki-Petaja became the first Bulldog freshman since Victor Lange (2013) to register a top-5 finish.
- Niilo Maki-Petaja became just the fourth Bulldog in the last six seasons to record a top-5 finish.
- Niilo Maki-Petaja became the first Bulldog since Thomas Henson (2022) to shoot at or under par in all three rounds of an event.
LA Tech will be back in action Feb. 12-13 at the Hal Williams Collegiate in Mobile, Alabama. The two-day event will be hosted by South Alabama.
SOCIAL MEDIA
For all the latest in Bulldog Golf, follow us on Twitter (@LATechGolf), Instagram (@LATech_Golf), and Facebook (LATechGolf).
Players Mentioned
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