The No. 10 LSU men’s golf team finished the two-day Valspar Invitational at Floridian on Tuesday as the runner-up in Palm City, Florida.
LSU completed its week at 12-under par, 840. The team followed No. 2 Florida State, which claimed the tournament title at 17-under par.
The Tigers had similar scores from all of its golfers throughout the tournament, which was what LSU coach Chuck Winstead had predicted.
“They played very well, which is what I would expect,” Winstead said. “There are certainly areas where we will have to continue to improve. Across the board the scores were pretty similar.”
The Tigers competed against an elite field of national championship contenders, so Winstead was satisfied with the team’s performance on the final day. Eight of the field’s 13 teams are ranked inside of the nation’s top-20 men’s collegiate teams, according to Golfweek.
“The tournament was very good,” Winstead said. “To finish second in an NCAA final type field is very strong. Obviously, there is room to improve and get better but another positive tournament for our team.”
LSU cultivated first-round scores at even or under par from the entire lineup Monday.
Sophomore Eric Ricard led the way for LSU, posting a first-round score of 4-under par. He was followed by senior Stewart Jolly at 3-under par, with junior Zach Wright and sophomore Brandon Pierce at 2-under. Senior Ben Taylor closed the leaderboards for the Tigers with an opening round score of even-par.
All teams suffered from a 32-minute rain delay at toward the conclusion of the first round, but it did not seem to affect the Tigers. LSU went on to shoot for a second round score of 4-under par, 280, finishing the 36-hole opening day at 15-under par.
LSU’s score on Monday placed it in the lead at one stroke ahead of Florida State, with the rest of the field at even or over par.
LSU went on to complete its final day with a team score of 3-over par in the round, which was just enough for Florida State to capture the lead, never to be deprived of it again in the tournament.
Pierce notched a tournament score of 3-under par, 210, placing him in a tie for sixth place in the event. Taylor came in 11th place at 2-under par, and sophomore Ricard finished 16th at 1-under par.
Jolly and Wright struggled in the final round, posting scores of 3-over par, and 7-over par, respectively. Jolly finished his week with an overall score of 1-over par, and Wright at 3-over par.
The Tigers were shooting for their second-consecutive victory but came up short of their goal. They will have a chance to redeem themselves April 4-5 at the Aggie Invitational in College Station, Texas.