The Mercer men’s golf team has recently had some disappointing tournaments, though it appears that their slump is finally coming to an end in dramatic fashion.
On Feb. 20-21, the Bears participated in the Mobile Bay Intercollegiate Magnolia Grove Crossings Golf Course in Mobile, Ala. The tournament was hosted by the University of South Alabama.
After the first day, Mercer was in sole possession of sixth place, due in large part to the play of sophomore James Beale and senior Josh Cone. Beale shot a 71 and a 74, while Cone managed a 75 and a 73. Sophomore Hans Reimers rebounded from his first round to shoot a 69. Mercer finished the first day with a shot total of 579, four shots out of second place and nine out of first.
Unfortunately for Coach Bradley, his team fell to eighth place after the second day, due to a final round total of 296, 875 for the tournament. Reimers shot another sub-par round on the final day, which made him one of two golfers at the event to do so.
After a short week, the orange and black would head back to Sawgrass Country Club to play in the John Hayt Intercollegiate, hosted by the Eagles of the University of North Florida. After the first day of play, Mercer was in 14th place with a shot total of 309, behind the field-leading 294 of Central Florida. Beale led the team with a two-over-par 74. The second round saw the Bears falter, posting a 308 and falling to 15th place. Cone led Mercer through the second round, shooting a 76, although Beale had the best combined score for the Bears at 181. Mercer would rebound on the final day with their lowest score in the tournament of 295. Freshman Trey Rule shot a 71 in the last round, while junior John Gregory Joseph would finish on par at 72.
Mercer would rebound on March 9 in the first round of the Seminole Intercollegiate, hosted by Florida State. Junior Thomas Holmes would shoot his collegiate-career best total of 68, while Beale and Rule each added sub-par rounds as well. As a team, Mercer was minus five on the back nine holes. Reimers and Joseph added a 73 and 74 respectively to the effort.
“The way this course is laid out, there are some opportunities for birdies,” Mercer head coach Steve Bradley said to mercerbears.com. “We made those birdies and managed ourselves well around the hard holes today. But I was most impressed with how we finished off the round— it really shows what we are capable of.”
At the end of the second round, Mercer had slipped to fourth place, one shot behind conference-rivals Kennesaw State. Beale shot a 69, Rule shot a 72,while Holmes, Joseph and Reimers each shot a 74 to bring Mercer’s two round total to 570.
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