The UConn men’s golf team traveled to North Myrtle Beach, S.C. for the Surf Club Invitational hosted by Appalachian State. The Huskies joined 16 other teams at the par-71 Surf Golf and Beach club for what was originally intended to be a 54–hole event before poor weather conditions forced it to be shortened to 36 holes. Last year, UConn claimed a dominating first place finish in the event and came in with hopes to defend its title.
Connecticut opened round one with strong performances across the board, finishing four under par as a unit for the day. Junior Connor Goode set the pace this round, shooting birdies on three of the first five holes, offsetting a bogey on hole three. From there he remained steady, with another birdie and bogey cancelling each other out, putting him two below par at 69 for the round. Senior Ray Dennehy also opened on hole one and faced some early challenges, carding bogeys on holes two and three. He quickly recovered with consecutive birdies right after and continued to trade birdies and bogeys to hover around an even par. A timely birdie on hole 17 ultimately secured him a one-under finish with 70.
Sophomore Alex Heard teed off on hole two and delivered a steady performance that contributed to UConn’s strong start. Sitting at even par going into his final hole, he shot a clutch birdie to close one under, carding another solid 70. Fellow sophomore Bradley Sawka maintained consistency through his front nine before bogeys on holes 10 and 11 set him back. However, he showed resilience and delivered birdies on his final two holes to end the round at an even-par-71. Day one finished with UConn leading the pack with a gross score of 280 (-4), closely followed by Longwood (-2) and Appalachian State (E).
After an impressive first day, however, round two proved more challenging for the Huskies with three golfers settling for bogeys on hole three, allowing other teams to pass them on the leaderboard. Dennehy led the way on Tuesday, sinking back-to-back birdies on holes four and five to put him back on track. He was unable to finish under par though, as it seemed every birdie was met with a bogey to cancel it out. Dennehy finished with an even-par for the round and finished tied for 6th individually in the event at -1. Heard started off the round steady, matching par for the front nine before bogeys on holes 10 and 13 kept him above par. He wrapped up his round over two, moving him to 13th individually at +1. Goode seemed to struggle more than the first day, despite a solid start. The back nine hurt his score badly, with four bogeys in six holes. His round ended three over, and matched Heard at +1 overall. It was a similar story for Sawka, a bogey and double bogey on holes 12 and 13 being the difference maker, with another over three performance in round two, putting him in 21st at +3 overall. Longwood and Appalachian State leaped the Huskies in the standings after both posting impressive second rounds.
UConn fought hard, but the struggles on day two proved costly, forcing them to settle for third overall at +4. Despite coming up short, the Huskies showcased strong individual performances, especially on day one. With key players showing resilience under pressure, the team proved they can compete at a high level. Their next test comes next week at the ECU Intercollegiate, where they will aim for a more complete performance across all rounds.