Wake Forest University
VCU Shootout
Demon Deacons Finish Second At VCU Shootout
9/28/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
MANAKIN-SABOT, Va. - The Wake Forest men's golf team started the final round of the VCU Shootout 10-shots behind 36-hole leader UNC Wilmington. After a strong start, the Deacs closed the gap and eventually tied for the lead but the Seahawks were able to pull ahead late and claim a one-shot victory.
Individually, Wake Forest sophomore Evan Beck carded his third under-par round of the tournament on Tuesday, with a 3-under 69, and finished in third place at 5-under par.
Midway through the back nine, Wake Forest and ECU were able to pull even with the Seahawks, setting up a frenzy finish. ECU had a disastrous closing stretch and a couple of late bogeys by the Deacs allowed UNCW to take a slim two-shot lead with just a couple of scores remaining. Demon Deacon senior Justin Bryant eagled his final hole of the day, the par-5 second, but it just wasn't enough as the Seahawks held on for their first win of the season.
"We played well again today but we just had too many three-putts," said Wake Forest head coach Jerry Haas. "I'm real proud of the guys though. They struck the ball well this week and I really like what I'm seeing. Our goal was to come here and win but it's not easy to win a tournament. Each week, we want to continue to get better and I think we did that. There were a lot of positives to take from this week."
Wake carded its second-straight round of 1-over 289 on Tuesday and finished the tournament at 1-under par. East Carolina finished third at 4-over par while Richmond and UNC Greensboro rounded out the top-5 at six and seven over, respectively.
Beck got out of the gate quick on Tuesday with birdies at Nos. 1 and 5 and was 3-under par through 11 holes. After his lone bogey of the round at No. 12, the Virginia Beach, Va., native made five pars and a birdie to finish with a 3-under 69. He finished three shots behind Nate McCoy of Iowa State, who won the event at 8-under par. Robert Hoadley of UNC Greensboro finished second at 6-under par.
"Evan played real solid the last two days," said Haas. "He didn't make many mistakes. He had a nice up-and-down on No. 17 today and gave himself a lot of chances. He's really striking the ball solidly right now."
The 69 was Beck's fourth under-par round this season and it was his seventh-straight round at par or better dating back to the final round of the NCAA Regional last spring. He is now just the fifth Demon Deacon since 1984 to have a streak of at least seven-straight under-par rounds. The last Deacon to do so was Webb Simpson during the 2007-08 season.
Beck made four birdies in each of the three rounds and was a combined 7-under par on the front nine. He now leads the team through two tournaments with a 69.8 scoring average.
Junior Lee Bedford also made three birdies in the first 11 holes on Tuesday and would finish with his best round of the tournament at 2-under 70. After opening with rounds of 74-71 on Monday, Bedford finished tied for seventh at 1-under par.
Bedford has placed in the top-10 in each tournament this year after winning the season-opening Carpet Capital Classic two weeks ago. Dating back to last spring, the Cary, NC, native has been in the top-10 in six of his last nine tournaments.
Bryant opened the event Monday morning with a solid round of even-par 72. He then stumbled a bit in the afternoon, carding a 78 and found himself 4-over par with three holes to play on Tuesday. Needing a strong finish to help the team, the St. Louis, Mo., native birdied the tough par-4 18th and then struck two solid shots on the par-5 second, that setup an eagle. Bryant wound-up with a 1-over 73 and finished the tournament tied for 37th at 1-over par.
Sophomore Charlie Harrison started his day with a double-bogey at the first hole and despite a couple of birdies midway through the round, he would end up posting a 5-over 77. After opening the tournament with a career-low 69, Harrison finished the event tied for 29th at 4-over par.
Freshmen John Varol and Beau Cutts each played well in their first collegiate tournaments. Varol carded a pair of 73s on Monday and followed that with a 77 on Tuesday to finish at 7-over par. Cutts, who was playing as an individual, opened with a round of 1-under 71 on Monday before posting back-to-back 75s to finish tied for 31st at 5-over par.
The Deacons have now finished second in each of the first two events and won't have to wait long to get back on the course. Wake is set to play in the NC State Fall Intercollegiate at the Lonnie Poole Golf Course in Raleigh, NC, starting next Monday, Oct. 4. The first two rounds of the 54-hole event will take place on Monday and the final round will be played on Tuesday, Oct. 5.
| Wake Forest | 285 | 289 | 289 | 863 | -1 | 2nd |
| Evan Beck | 71 | 71 | 69 | 211 | -5 | 3rd |
| Lee Bedford | 74 | 71 | 70 | 215 | -1 | t-7th |
| Charlie Harrison | 69 | 74 | 77 | 220 | +4 | t-29th |
| Beau Cutts # | 71 | 75 | 75 | 221 | +5 | t-31st |
| Justin Bryant | 72 | 78 | 73 | 223 | +7 | t-37th |
| John Varol | 73 | 73 | 77 | 223 | +7 | t-37th |
Players Mentioned
