WEST DES MOINES, Iowa – The Drake men's golf team concluded play at its host tournament of the Zach Johnson Invitational on Tuesday afternoon held at Glen Oaks Country Club. The Bulldogs recorded their best finish of the season so far with a tie for second place out of 14 teams after shooting a 54-hole total of 863 (289-284-290).
Jake Weissenburger was the leader for Drake as he recorded a top-10 finish over his three rounds of play. Weissenburger tied for ninth with a total score of 213 (73-68-72) and his second round score of 68 was the low-round of the tournament for the Bulldogs.
Jack Dumas and
Nate Spear followed in the Bulldog lineup with top-25 finishes on the leaderboard. Dumas tied for 17th and posted a 216 (71-73-72) final score. Spear finished tied for 23rd and was just two shots behind Dumas at 218 (74-69-75).
Dylan Drogemuller (71-74-77=222), tied for 39th and
Nikko Ganas (77-77-71=225) ended in a tie for 59th.
Drake had two members of the squad compete as individuals with
Parker Payne and
Sam Johnson. Payne improved each day of the tournament and carded a total of 222 (77-73-72). Meanwhile, Johnson posted a 54-hole total of 240 (86-77-77).
"Overall, I thought we had a great tournament," Drake head coach
Matt Lewis said. "Jake [Weissenburger] and Jack [Dumas] were solid all three rounds. Nate [Spear] playing in his first event this fall really stepped up and played well, especially his second round. We put ourselves in a position to win a tournament and after roughly 14 holes we pulled within five shots of Iowa State. Unfortunately, we struggled our final few holes as a team, but it was a great learning experience for our guys. It is tough to simulate the pressure, so I was glad we got to compete against great competition. With three long weeks, with three tournaments in a row, we are looking forward to taking a day or two off to recharge and then we will work on things we have learned to get ready for our next event. I love the trend this team is on. We have improved over the course of each tournament that we have participated in."
Iowa State took home the team title with an 843 (287-284-272) tournament total and Connor Hamm from Bradley was the individual medalist winner at 200 (67-64-69).
Drake will have some time off before its next competition at the Grier Jones Shocker Invitational held in Newton, Kan. Oct. 6-7.
