University of Missouri
Mason Rudolph Championship
@MizzouMensGolf Secures Top-5 Finish at Mason Rudolph Championship
4/2/2017 3:43:00 PM | Men's Golf
Walker earns another Top-10 individual finish to lead the Tigers in Franklin, Tenn.
FRANKLIN, Tenn. - Mizzou Men's Golf played two strong rounds, and was positioned alone in fourth place coming down the stretch of the final round at the Vanderbilt Legends Club. The last three holes of play were unkind to the Tigers, as head coach Mark Leroux's squad dropped into a tie for fifth place, ceding the fourth spot to No. 21 Duke. At what was perhaps the most talented field of the season for the Black & Gold, Mizzou finished behind only the aforementioned Blue Devils, No. 3 Vanderbilt, No. 6 Florida and conference foe Alabama.
Leading the Tigers at the event was senior Euan Walker (Troon, Scotland), who put on a show in Franklin. For the second-straight tournament, Walker finished under-par, shooting a 208 (-5) over three rounds, including a round two 67, which is his lowest of this season, to date. Walker's score was good enough to place him tied for 10th, marking his first top-10 finish this season and the seventh of his career. Walker added two rounds under-par to his season tally, giving him 13 on the season, which is the most on the team.
Junior Hayden Buckley (Belden, Miss.) finished tied for 15th, shooting just two strokes off of Walker's team-leading pace. His 3-under-par tournament marked the third time this season Buckley has played a tournament under-par, a number matched only by Walker. Two of those three under-par tournament finishes have come during the spring season, a welcome sign for the Tigers that the junior is saving his best for last.
In the third slot was sophomore Matt Echelmeier (Columbia, Mo.), who played one of his more solid tournaments of the season. Echelmeier missed even par by just a stroke, shooting a 1-over-par through 54 holes. His 214 was good enough to net him a share of 31st place.
Senior Linus Lilliedahl (Sandviken, Sweden) finished just a stroke back of Echelmeier's pace, shooting a 215 and placing alone in the 34th slot while freshman Rory Franssen (Inverness, Scotland) finished tied for 35th with a 54-hole score of 216.
For just the second time this season, Mizzou was able to place all of its traveling golfers in the individual top-40. The Tigers also accomplished the feat at the Turning Stone Intercollegiate to kick off the fall season.
Mizzou returns home to Columbia, Missouri, to host the Tiger Invitational, at The Club at Old Hawthorne, from Monday, April 10-Tuesday, April 11. Fans are encouraged to visit throughout the event to cheer on the Tigers in their lone home event of the 2016-17 season.
For all the latest on Mizzou Men's Golf, stay tuned to MUTigers.com or follow the program on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook (@MizzouMensGolf).
