The Iowa women’s golf team claimed a sixth place finish in the Badger Invitational with a 18-over team score. Over the same weekend, the Iowa men’s golf team placed eighth in the Highlands Invitational with a 22-over team score.
Both the women’s and the men’s sides stayed in the Midwest to compete, with the women travelling to Madison, Wisconsin and the men competing in Chicago.
Fourth-year Riley Lewis and third-year Ximena Benites each carded a 73 for the women’s team to share the team best score of the first round. The Hawkeyes completed day one with a seven-over team score.
Round two brought better scores for the whole team, but none better than third-year Maura Peters, who tied her career low round of 69. Three strokes behind Peters at even par was Lewis, who shot a 72. Fourth-year Shannon Voglyer shot her weekend best of 73 and Benites followed one stroke behind at 74. First-year Sunny Wang slotted in a 76 and fourth-year Kailtynn Hanna, who played as an individual, rounded out the lineup with a 77.
During the final round, Peters continued her stellar play by posting an even 72 to place her at number nine on the leaderboard, the highest finish out of the Hawkeyes. Benites shot a 75 to end her weekend while Lewis and Vogler both scored a 76. Wang shot a 77 and Hanna shot her best score of the weekend with a 71.
The Hawkeyes finished the tournament with an 882, one stroke behind Washington State. Illinois won the tournament with an impressive 16-under team performance, the only team to finish under par the whole weekend.
Windy City work
Fourth-year Gage Messingham led the Hawkeyes on day one with a score of 73 that included an eagle on hole 12. First-year Grant Grudgel shot a 72 and led the team in birdies with four. Third-year Max Tjoa, who played well in the team’s previous tournament, opened up his weekend with a 75. Second-year Chance Rinkol carded a 76 and first-year Bennett Warren shot a 77 to even out the lineup.
Grudgel, a Stillwater, Oklahoma native, recorded Iowa’s best round of day two with an even 72 with three birdies on the back nine. Tjoa followed with a 75 which included a two-under back nine. Messingham shot a 76, Rinkol carded a 77, and Warren posted a 78 to put the Hawkeyes at twelve-over for the day.
Rinkol shined in the third round with a team best card of 70 and Tjoa followed with a 71. Grudgel shot a 73 and placed a team high 22nd place on the leaderboard. Messingham recorded a 74 and Warren slotted a 75 to end the weekend.
Iowa finished in eighth place with a 886 team score, one stroke behind Texas-San Antonio. Wake Forest won the tournament with a 24-under team score.
Up Next
The women’s team will host the Diane Thomason Invitational, which they won last season, from Sept. 29-30 in Iowa City, while the men’s team will travel to South Bend, Indiana to compete in the Fighting Irish Classic from Oct. 6-7