The UConn men’s golf team put on an impressive showing at the Golfweek Spring Challenge in Pawley’s Island, S.C., from Monday to Wednesday, coming in second place out of 17 teams.
Connecticut started out with a score of 287 in the first round, one under par, as they adjusted to the course. Connor Goode led the way for the Huskies, shooting an eagle and four birdies on his way to a 70, two under par. Bradley Sawka also came in under par for the round, carding a 71 with four birdies and three bogeys.
Meanwhile, senior Ray Dennehy had an up-and-down round, recording both an eagle and a double bogey two holes apart. He ended up with a 72 to break even. Vikram Konanki, playing in his first invitational of the spring as a part of the team score, shot a 74, carding a triple bogey on the fourth hole, although he recovered with three birdies on the back nine. Two other golfers, Alex Heard and Eric Boulger, who played as independents, didn’t have their scores count for the official round.
On the second day, the Huskies found their groove. This was especially true for Konanki as he bounced back from his 74 of the previous day to card an impressive 65, seven under par. He had six birdies on the front nine and two more on the back end, his only blemish being a bogey on the sixth hole. Goode also put on a good performance, building on his momentum from the first round with six birdies and a score of 67, five under par. Heard, who was recently named BIG EAST Player of the Week, recovered from his effort the day before and shot a 69; a double bogey on the 16th hole prevented him from having an even better round. Dennehy rounded out the team score on day two with a 74, two over par. As a team, UConn shot 275, improving by 12 strokes and moving from the back of the pack into a tie for second with their fellow BIG EAST team St. John’s.
Heading into the third and final day, UConn was neck-and-neck with St. John’s and a few strokes behind leader Jacksonville State. Although the Huskies struggled to recapture the very low scores of the previous day, they still managed to keep pace. Heard provided the best effort of the round, shooting a 70. Konanki and Goode both shot a 71 to come in one under par. Rounding out the day three score, Sawka managed to break even with a 72. In total for the third round, Connecticut shot a four under par 284, securing second place behind St. John’s, who ended up winning after carding a 281 in the final round. Jacksonville State fell back to third place with a 292.
For the players, Goode carded a 208 overall, good for fourth among all competing golfers. Konanki tied for eighth place with a 210, holding the distinction of UConn’s best round—a 65—of all three days. Heard tied for 21st place after a similar-looking trajectory in the invitational to Konanki, ending up with a 214. Sawka and Dennehy tied for 41st and 56th, respectively.
In the rest of the field, despite Jacksonville State’s faltering in the final round, two of their golfers, Ryley Heath and Ben Shedd, secured a 1-2 finish on the player leaderboard. Carson Bellish of Xavier, the other BIG EAST team to compete in the invitational, came in third place, just ahead of UConn’s Goode.