Liberty University
Mason Rudolph Championship
No. 20 Liberty Finishes as Runner-Up at Mason Rudolph Championship
4/7/2019 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
For the second time in three days, No. 20 Liberty had a strong close to its round, allowing the Flames to finish as the runner-up at the 2019 Mason Rudolph Championships.
The Flames carded a combined eight birdies during their final three holes at Vanderbilt Legends Club – South Course (par 71, 7,100 yards), allowing Liberty to post a runner-up score of 12-under par 840 (280-278-282).
Tournament host and No. 4 ranked Vanderbilt blitzed its home course for the second day in a row, running away with the team title after posting a winning score of 29-under par 823 (284-269-270).
Round Recap – Liberty's Starting Five:
• No. 30 Ervin Chang: T5 7-over par 206 (72-64-70)
• No. 64 Gabe Lench: T8 6-under par 207 (67-69-71)
• Alexandre Fuchs: T27 even par 213 (69-73-71)
• Kieran Vincent: T47 4-over par 217 (72-72-73)
• Jonathan Yaun: T47 4-over par 217 (72-75-70)
Field Reflections:
• No. 4 Vanderbilt won its home tournament for the second year in a row and for the sixth time since the event started in 2001.
• The Flames finished one stroke ahead of No. 25 Tennessee, who took home third place with an 11-under par 841 (269-288-284).
• Liberty finished well ahead of the other two top-50 ranked teams in the 16-team field, as No. 41 • Marquette finished in 10th place (6-over par 858/280-283-295) and No. 45 Northwestern finished in 11th place (7-over par 859/278-288-293).
• Liberty's 2-under par 282 during the closing round was one of only four team scores that were under par, as the course played the toughest during the final round.
• The 16-team field played the course at an average score of 72.91 on Sunday, as compared to 71.71 on Friday and 72.21 on Saturday.
Birdies and Bogeys – Liberty Team Notes:
• Liberty's strong finish on Sunday was its second of the tournament, after the Flames posted nine birdies and two eagles during the back nine on Friday.
• The tournament was Liberty's third regular season event where the Flames will only play 18 holes per day during a 54-hole event, helping prepare them for the same style of play at the ASUN Men's Golf Championship and the NCAA Regionals.
• The Flames carded 11 total birdies on the par-5 holes on Sunday and led the tournament field in par-5 scoring (26-under par/4.57 scoring average).
• Ervin Chang, who is individually ranked No. 30 in the country, led the Flames with a 7-under par 207 (72-64-70).
• Chang posted three back-nine birdies to record his 15th round at par or better this season.
• Gabe Lench, who is ranked No. 64 in the country, finished one stroke behind Chang and was tied for eighth place with a 6-under par 207 (67-69-71).
• The lone senior in Liberty's starting five finished the tournament with a pair of sub-70 rounds and now leads the team with 17 rounds at par or better this season.
• The Flames have finished as the tournament runner-up in their last two events (also at the Linger Longer Invitational – March 15-17) and posted a top-five finish in their last seven tournaments.
• The tournament marked the first of two regular season tune-ups for the Flames before they play in their first-ever ASUN Men's Golf Championship at The Legends Club in Braselton, Ga., April 21-23.
Back on the Course – Liberty's Next Event:
• Stitch Intercollegiate (April 13-14)
• Macgregor Downs Country Club (Cary, N.C.)
• Hosted by NC State
• Par 72, 6,673 yards
