Missouri men’s golf finished the Folds of Honor on a high note, placing sixth amongst the 15 teams competing — a vast improvement from the 11th place it sat in after day one. Missouri’s first match may not have garnered the most ideal result, but junior Veikka Viskari and sophomore Trent Mierl showed promise.
Viskari was Missouri’s top placer, finishing in seventh. Viskari posted solid scores on days one and two, shooting 76 and 72, putting him six strokes over par. However, on the third day, Viskari turned it up a notch, shooting 66 (-5), skyrocketing him up 29 spots on the player leaderboard. His average score of 71.3 is a huge improvement from his average score of 73.58 last year.
Despite a rough back nine on the third day, sophomore Trent Mierl had a solid match, placing 11th overall. The sophomore built upon the momentum he picked up last year, shooting +3 over the week with an average score of 71.7. Mierl’s best round came on the second day, where he shot 67, birdieing 5 of the 18 holes while only bogeying once.
Freshman Reese Roberts had a very consistent match, shooting an average score of 73.3 and individual scores of 73, 73 and 74 over the three days. However, he had a stellar back nine on the second day, shooting three under par. Roberts placed No. 28 overall.
A tough third day for junior Bradley Mulder pushed him to 11 over par in the match. Outside of the rough third round, Mulder held steady around par, shooting 75 on the first day and 72 on the second. Bradley placed 42nd overall.
Senior Virgilio Paz had quite an underwhelming match for the Tigers. Paz started to pick up some real steam towards the end of last season, so his 76 average felt underwhelming. Virgilio started with a rough first day, shooting 80 (+9). He bogeyed on eight holes, including a double on the 11th, while recording only one birdie on hole 18. Paz picked things up on the third day, shooting a respectable 72.
The Alabama Crimson Tide won the match with a collective score of -5. They held the lead for all three days of the match, heavily backed by William Jennings, whose -4 score was good enough for first. Expect Bama to pose quite the threat to Missouri throughout Southeastern Conference play.
Missouri men’s golf will compete in the Canadian Collegiate Invitational in Ontario on Sept. 14.
Edited by Killian Wright | [email protected]
Copy edited by Avery Copeland | [email protected]
Edited by Chase Pray | [email protected]