Men's Golf Finishes Third at the Irish Creek Invitational, Two Cobras Finish Inside the Top 10

KANNAPOLIS, N.C. - Coker University men's golf finished third at the Irish Creek Invitational on Tuesday (Oct. 11), with Jonathan Hallinger and Caleb Tidd finishing inside the Top 10 individually. 

The Cobras finished ahead of several nationally-ranked squads in the field, finishing behind only No. 9 Lincoln Memorial and No. 16 Lander. The team's tournament total of 854 is the third-lowest 54-hole total score in program history. 

"It was another good showing for our guys, who finished fifth, third and third over the last three weeks," said head coach John Hackney. "This was the second straight event that we held the 36-hole lead, but I thought we reacted much better this week. The putts just did not fall for us today, and that's golf. We made 35 birdies in the first two rounds and only 12 today, and that was the difference between hoisting the trophy and placing third. Lincoln Memorial, which rallied to the title, had 18 birdies and an eagle today. They were also one-under on their last four holes, while we were +5, so there's the six shots between first and third."

"We also had four guys in the top 20. Jonathan was tied for fourth, Caleb tied for eighth,  Killian tied for 13th and Fred tied for 20th, so in the grand scheme of things, we are rolling in the right direction. The 565 total for three rounds is the second-lowest in school history and Jonathan Hallinger's 135 (-7) for 36 holes is also second best. We have played in three excellent tournaments against some great foes and have held our own, so we can't wait to see what happens moving forward. This is a very talented bunch so big things are coming!"

Hallinger rode yesterday's momentum to a tie for fourth place individually, shooting a +5 76 in the final round. Hallinger's 211 for the tournament tied for seventh all-time in program history in a 54-hole total. 

Caleb Tidd finished tied for eighth individually after shooting a -4 67 in the third round, to turn in a 213 for the tournament. 

"Caleb had an excellent day. He carded five birdies, including on his last hole, to shoot five-under 67 and had just one bogey on the card. He one-putted eight greens with just 28 putts, was in good shape off the tee all 14 times and hit 14 greens. He was just in rhythm all day. 

Killian Ryan shot a 72 (+1) in the final round to finish in a tie for 13th individually with a tournament total of 215. 

"Killian hit 13 fairways and 13 greens, had 32 putts and rolled in three birdies to fire 1-over 72."

Fred Tindale would finish in a tie for 20th individually with a +4 75 on the day, to bring his tournament total to 216. Derek McGlaughlin turned in a +4 75 in the final round to bring his tournament total to 224. 

"Derek was victimized by three double bogeys and played the other 15 at 2-under. After a superb ball-striking day on Monday, Jonathan managed just one birdie Tuesday with 34 putts. Still, he has been tied for first and tied for fourth in the last two events, proving he is an elite college golfer."

The Cobras return to the course on Oct. 24 at the Currahee Classic in Taccoa, Ga. at Currahee Golf Club.