High Point Men’s Golf Tied for Second at Phoenix Invitationa

• High Point missed tying a program record for low round by firing a -4 (280) in the second round of the Phoenix Invitational ton finish the day tied for second.
• Sophomore Brendan MacDougall tied his career-best and for fourth in HPU’s D-I era carding a second-round 67 (-4) and is sixth overall (72-67, 139).
• Sophomore RJ Bartolomucci anchored the lineup in the first round with a -2 (69) and finished the day tied for 12th (69-72, 141).

BURLINGTON, N.C. – Sophomore Brendan MacDougall posted a bogey-less -4 (67) in the second round as the High Point University men’s golf team is tied for second after two rounds at the Phoenix Invitational on Monday.

MacDougall fired a 72 on his first trip around the Alamance Country Club’s par-71 course on Monday. However, the Calgary, Alberta product dominated the second 18 holes going without a bogey while carding four birdies to tie his career-best round with a -4 (67).

“We want to compete to win every event we enter and our guys have given themselves a chance to do that by earning a spot in the final group in the final round tomorrow,” head coach Brady Gregor said “Obviously, we had some great individual play with Brendan and RJ both finishing the day under par, but what was most exciting was we had our first round of the year where all five players were in it for all 18 holes. Any time you’re throwing out 72’s, your team is playing well. I’m excited to watch these guys compete for the tournament coming down the home stretch tomorrow.”

MacDougall’s 67 is tied for the fourth-best round in HPU’s Division I era and has him in sixth through 36 holes. As a team, the Panthers are -1 (280, 287) and tied with Big South foe Radford in the 16-team field. The 280 score in the second round is the fourth best in HPU’s Division I era and missed tying the record by one stroke.

Right behind MacDougall is High Point’s first-round star –RJ Bartolomucci. The sophomore got it going early shooting three-under for the first 12 holes. From there, the Hilton Head, S.C. native finished the round -2 (69) before tallying a +1 (72) to finish the day tied for 12th.

Just one shot behind Bartolomucci, sophomore Alec Weary is tied for 18th (72-70, 142). The third sophomore opened his day with two bogeys in his first four holes, but recovered to shoot a +1 (72) in the first round before going under par with a 70 on his second trip around the course.

The fourth sophomore in an all-underclassmen lineup, Justin Lenzini, finished the day +3 but also showed improvement as the afternoon went on. Lenzini bogeyed three of his first four holes, but finished his last 32 with two birdies and just two more bogeys to find himself tied for 34th (74-71, 145).

In his first collegiate appearance, freshman Ryan Crema got off to a rough start firing a +10 (81) in the first round. However, the Surrey, England native showed his mettle improving by nine strokes with an +1 (72) in the second round.

Playing as individuals, freshman Ethan Willis posted a 71 in the first round and followed that up with a 74. Meanwhile, junior Davis Kiger carded a 74 and a 78 on the day. Willis will enter the third round tied for 50th while Kiger is tied for 72nd in the field.

The Panthers will be back on the course at 8 a.m. for the third and final round at the Phoenix Invitational.