LITCHFIELD PARK, Ariz. – Guilford College senior Noah Ratner (Asheville, N.C./Asheville) shot six-over-par 76 in Monday’s third and final round of the Patriot All-America Invitational on the Wigwam Resort’s par-70 Gold Course. Ratner shared 21st place in the 82-man field with a 54-hole score of 71-70-76-217, 11 strokes behind medalist Sebastian Cappalen.
Ratner, who placed 66th in last year’s inaugural Patriot Invitational, was the top NCAA Division III participant. He opened the round with three straight bogeys and made the turn with a six-over 40. The defending NCAA Division III Player of the Year bogeyed 10 and 11 before posting his lone birdie of the day on the par-four 12th. Ratner parred his final six holes to finish with a 76.
Cappalen, of the University of Arkansas, shot Monday’s low round, a three-under 68, to claim medalist honors by one stroke over Kevin Penner of the University of Nevada Las Vegas. Cappalen shared the lead with Penner after 18 holes and finished with a four-under 68-70-68-206. Penner also carded a second-round 70, but shot 69 in Monday’s third and final round. Florida State University’s Daniel Berger and Jimmy Kozikowski of Grand Canyon University shared third place at 208.
Ratner was the lone Guilford student competing in the second-annual 54-hole tournament hosted by the Wigwam Golf Club, the Arizona Golf Association, the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) and the Folds of Honor Foundation. The field was comprised of current college golfers from all divisions who received PING All-America recognition in 2012. GCAA major award recipients, members of the most recent Palmer Cup Teams and a member from the United States Military, Naval and Air Force Academies’ teams were also included in the field.
The tournament was created in 2011 to recognize top college golfers and honor fallen U.S. military servicemen and servicewomen. Each participant in the event carried a golf bag representing a fallen military member. The bags will be signed by the contestants and auctioned off for the benefit of the Folds of Honor Foundation, which provides post-secondary educational scholarships for children and spouses of military men and women killed or disabled in action.
Ratner played in honor of Private First Class James F. McClamrock of the United States Army. A resident of Huntersville, N.C., McClamrock served with the Army’s Hawaii-based 25th-Infantry Division. He was killed by an Iraqi soldier while on security detail in Iraq Sept. 7, 2010. The 22-year-old Columbia, S.C., native graduated from South Iredell High School in 2006 and is survived by his wife, Shannah.
Ratner and his Guilford College mates resume their season Feb. 25-26 with the Pine Needles Invitational.